India, the Culture

Jean Free, a library consultant, was an elementary-school teacher and
librarian in Whitby, Ontario.

Bobbie Kalman has created an exciting new juvenile education series
focusing on the Far Eastern countries of India, Tibet, China, and Japan.
Two of the books in this series are India: The Culture and India: The
People.

India: The Culture is divided into 11 topics—including art,
festivals, religion, food, and recreation—and interesting information
is presented on each topic. For example, on Indian customs of dress, the
reader is told how to wrap a sari and what men’s and children’s
clothing is like. There is also information on the Hindu marriage and
ceremony (with its seven wedding promises) as well as simplified recipes
for chapati, an Indian bread, and Indian ice cream.

India: The People focuses on India’s diverse rural and city life, its
social problems and poverty, and its history and customs. Here, such
topics as pollution and lack of education are addressed.

Both books are clearly written in a highly readable style and are free
of gender bias. The texts are presented in short paragraphs with bold
headings, and are illustrated with stunning full-page photographs and
line drawings.

This excellent series should be in every school and public library so
that it can be used by students for research and by teachers (and/or
parents) to help Canadian children understand the cultures of East Asian
people who now live in Canada.