To Bring Children Back
to Books
Shamim
Ahsan
Children's
interest in books is apparently on the wane. We have come a
long way since those good old days when one common source of
entertainment for children constituted stories they listened
to lying on their grandmothers' laps. By the time the grandmother's
collection was exhausted the child had already started to peep
into the world of books; he crossed over from childhood to boyhood
reading fairy tales, ghost stories, thrillers, detective novels
that were there in the tiny 'family bookshelf' in one corner
of the house or at a nearby library. In this age of digital
smartness grandmother's lap has now been replaced by cartoons
and books have lost their place to computer games. Poor substitutes
no doubt but that is reality.
This
is however a universal phenomenon and there have been efforts
to counter this downslide of interest in books among today's
children. One particular tactic that has apparently worked quite
well is making the book visually attractive. Because when it
comes to attracting the child's attention the presentation or
look of a book is of immense importance, sometimes even more
than the content inside. The conventional look of books began
to fake cushions and ingenious shapes -- in many of the western
countries for the last one and a half decades. Nothing was happening
in Bangladesh though. Not until 2000.
The credit
goes to Progoti Publishers that first ventured in such uncharted
territory in 2000. "One of my acquaintances once showed
me a children's book published in England and asked if we could
do the same. There were 'pop-ups' in the book alongside text.
I worked as a teacher for some time, had interest in publishing
and, most importantly, owned a press," Asrar Mahmud, a
writer and the man behind the unique endeavour, relates how
it all started. He teamed up with four others including Unmad-fame
cartoonist and writer Ahsan Habib, who is also the art designer
of Progoti, Sazzad Kabir, Khurshid Hasan Rumi. In the next three
years, some of well-known bookshops like Zinat in New Market
as well as up market chain shops like Aarong, Agora, Meena Bazar
would be eagerly displaying some 25 books by Progoti. Although
3 years is too short a time to judge the success of such a venture,
it is evident that popularity of the books is growing slowly
but steadily.
It
is easy to distinguish Progoti's books because of their un-bookish
look. One cannot but help taking a peek into the vibrantly illustrated
and curiously shaped books whether the reader is 30 something
or a 5 year old. Especially for a child, with his natural inquisitiveness
and curiosity, the visual appeal of the books is almost unfailing.
"You cannot attract a 4-year old to a book for its literary
value, but when he sees a book shaped like a fish or a train
and discovers equally eye-catching illustrations inside he takes
interest in it on his own," Masud says as he displays some
of the books with ‘di-cut’. A di-cut book means giving the book
a certain shape the shape of a fish or a tiger or a train. Most
of Progoti's books are di-cut, a technique Masud claims wasn't
applied in books ever before in Bangladesh.
Then
there are these pop-ups, which give a book a more distinguished
and interesting look than di-cuts do. Pop-ups refer to the design
where the illustrated human or animal figures or even things
are done in such a way that they look as if they are coming
out of the page. So far Progoti has done pop-ups in only two
books in Pantaburi and Bagh o Harineer golpo,
because, Masud points out, though children have liked them very
much, many of their parents find the price too much to spend
on a fun read.
Progoti's
books cover a wide range of subjects. Story books -- both original
ones like Bhoot and Goenda Gogon by Ahsan
Habib and edited collections like Pantaburi, Nasiruddin Hozza's
Golpo. Books on general knowledge -- on trains, crocodiles,
tiger, frog, birds of Bangladesh etc with the aim to impart
the most elementary things about a particular subject. Written
in a child-friendly way texts are invariably accompanied by
beautiful graphic design and colourful illustration. Again,
books on magic, palmistry and drawing are there to cater to
children with special interest in these areas.
The response
so far has been satisfactory. "Our main problem is we haven't
yet been able to arrange for enough outlets. With only a handful
of outlets like those of Aarong, Aagora or Zinat we have reached
a very limited readership. Until we've been greatly dependent
on the Ekushey Boi Mela," he explains. He also reveals
one or two future plans of Progoti: " We are working on
a dictionary for children that will be the first of its kind."
The most exciting revelation is however reserved for comic lovers:
he adds secretively, at least four comics by Ahsan Habib are
due to hit the bookstall in a few months time.