Barefoot Bilinguals (Bengali)

"The aromas of homemade food sneak their way across an entire multicultural neighborhood as growling bellies wait to be filled with…dumplings! Recipes from Nigeria, Syria, China, Russia, Mexico, and more reveal tasty fillings tucked into doughs that are boiled, steamed, fried, and baked . . . Sriram's simple rhyming story celebrating the unifying magic of food pairs well with the childlike naïveté of de Antuñano's inclusive and diverse gouache illustrations" – Kirkus Reviews Savor a rhyming celebration of one of the world's most universal foods, now available in bilingual Bengali and English! Readers follow ten diverse families as they cook dumplings inside their homes in preparation for a neighborhood potluck. Dumplings are added to plates one by one, encouraging children to count with each new addition. Authentic recipes for all the dumplings and a map showing their regions of origin are included in the endnotes. Dumpling Day features dumplings from the following regions: India, USA (Pennsylvania Dutch), China (Cantonese), Nigeria, Japan, Israel, Mexico, Syria, Russia, Italy • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • Find recipes for all of the dumplings in the book! • A counting book to build early math skills Meera Sriram grew up in India and moved to the U.S in 1999. An engineer in the past, she now enjoys writing, leading early literacy programs and advocating for diverse bookshelves. Meera is the author of The Yellow Suitcase and has also co-authored several books in India. She believes in the transformative power of stories and likes to write about people, places and experiences less visible in children's literature. Inés de Antuñano is a Mexican illustrator and graphic designer. Her work is influenced by the beauty of urban chaos as well as arts and crafts, and has been published in several illustration catalogs and books in Mexico. Inés is inspired by her four-year-old son, who helps her rediscover the world around her with all the amazing things he says. Her artwork is created with gouache on paper and digital techniques.

"The illustrations are colorful, the bears that fill the busy scenes are appealing, and there is plenty for young readers to pour over" - School Library Journal Bear goes to town every day, and always has something to do! From the bakery, to the gym, to the toyshop, walk with Bear through the days of the week as he visits his favorite places in town. Explore Bear's town even more with a full map at the end. This bilingual Bengali and English addition to the beloved Bear series features delightful rhyming text to teach the days of the week • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • Learn about the days of the week • Features the classic bestselling Barefoot Books character, Bear! Award-winning author Stella Blackstone has written many of Barefoot's best-selling titles, including the Bear series and the Cleo the Cat series. She has been writing for children for over twenty years. Stella lives in Somerset, UK. Debbie Harter has illustrated over 20 books for Barefoot, including the beloved Bear series. As a child, Debbie would "lose herself in books (as long as they had pictures)" and hopes to continue doing so until she's very old. She lives in Cornwall, England.

"A cheery reminder of the fun to be had-and fears overcome-with a little imagination" -Publishers Weekly It's Ruby's first day at school, and it feels like there are beasts lurking around every corner! How will Mom help her find her courage? Ruby and Mom's adventures open the door for caregivers to ask children about their anxieties about new experiences. Now available in bilingual Bengali and English. • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • Perfect to read for first day of school jitters Kathryn White has written over two dozen children's books. When she is not writing, Kathryn visits schools and libraries telling stories and leading activities. She lives in Somerset, England with her husband and children. Miriam Latimer studied illustration at the University of the West of England. She now works as a full-time illustrator and combines this with workshops for primary school children. Miriam lives with her husband and their two sons in Devon, England.

"The high contrast black-and-white photographs in Baby Dream, Baby Food and Baby Play show babies smiling, yawning, eating, and waving...these books are sure to be a big hit with little ones!" – Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Peekaboo, I see you! Get ready to dance, build, splash and laugh together with Baby Play. This bilingual Bengali and English sequel to the bestseller Baby Talk has been especially created for caregivers and older children to bond and share special moments with new babies. Featuring simple, high-contrast photographs of a wide variety of babies and families, this adorable board book is sure to delight both babies and those who love them alike. • Created to develop early English and Bengali development • Black-and-white, high-contrast photographs that babies LOVE! • Depicts a diverse cast of babies and families Skye Silver grew up in Maryland but now lives in Boston, where she was the Associates of the Boston Public Library Writer in Residence in 2016-2017 under her real name, Lisa Rosinsky. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts with her family.

"Crede's tale of individuality and acceptance of self gets its point across in an age-appropriate manner. Little individualists will identify with Jet and respond favorably to Runyan's cartoon illustrations of wide-eyed animals with bendy limbs and googly eyes" – Kirkus Reviews Jet is not like any other cat . . . but when other animals try to convince her that she's really a bird or a frog or a goat, she learns to embrace her unique identity. This hilarious story, now in bilingual Bengali and English, teaches us to celebrate our differences and be confident in our true selves. • Develop early English and LANGUAGE language skills • Features a silly cast of animal characters • A perfect read-aloud for storytime, bedtime and in the classroom Phaea Crede writes silly stories for silly kids. Serious kids, too! Jet the Cat (Is Not a Cat) is her debut picture book. Phaea lives outside Boston, USA, with her husband, two kiddos, and a slightly stinky dog named Gus. Visit her at phaeacrede.com. Terry Runyan loves animals, particularly cats, and you'll usually find furry, feathery and fishy friends in her work. She enjoys mixing it up and works in many mediums such as watercolor, cut paper and digital. Terry teaches art classes online and enjoys sharing her journey and insights on her highly popular social media platforms. She lives in Leawood, Kansas. You can find her at terryrunyan.com.

"Young book lovers will relate to Benita's devotion to reading and be amused by the friendly night creatures, who are all based on Peruvian legends" – The Horn Book Magazine Benita loves to read in bed but keeps getting interrupted by a whistling Tunche, a scary Supay and other spooky creatures from Peruvian lore. To the creatures' disbelief, Benita is so absorbed by her book that she's not the least bit scared of them! Now available in bilingual Bengali and English, this humorous celebration of bedtime reading puts a global twist on taking the "scary" out of monsters. Mariana Llanos is a Peruvian-born writer of children's literature. In 2017, she was selected as the Best Latino Artist by the Hispanic Arts Council of Oklahoma, where she resides. Her first picture book for Barefoot Books, Run, Little Chaski!, was chosen for the 2022 Oklahoma Book Award and as a 2022 Library of Congress Great Reads Selection. When she's not writing, she enjoys baking, spending time with her children, and visiting schools to ignite the love for reading. Cocoretto is a Peruvian-born couple and team, Ivan and Natalia. They are illustrators, authors and designers with backgrounds in fine arts, graphic design and photography. With their strong graphic sense and bright, saturated colors, they like to build compelling and relatable environments for their work. They feel grateful to have the chance to make children around the world giggle and smile with their many books and translations. Ivan and Natalia live and work in the noisy city of Lima, the capital of Peru.

"This beautifully illustrated book offers a reminder that it is okay to feel worried, scared, or unsure while fostering resilience and gently encouraging young children to face their fears" – Rachel Merson, Psy.D. Licensed Clinical Psychologist Tomorrow may bring changes that are scary, strange or new. Tomorrow may bring chances to embrace your truest you. Empower kids to manage anxiety! Perfect for a bedtime story to ease next-day jitters, this lyrical picture book, in bilingual Bengali and English, reassures readers through calming affirmations that they have the strength to face whatever comes tomorrow. • Develop English and Bengali skills • Inspired by the author's own experience with anxiety • Lyrical words offer gentle wisdom for both children and adults • Endmatter includes resources and activities that offer useful strategies developed by for managing worries developed by a child development specialist Rebecca Gardyn Levington is a children's book author, poet and journalist with a particular penchant for penning both playful and poignant picture books and poems – primarily in rhyme. Rebecca's award-winning poems and articles have appeared in numerous anthologies, newspapers and magazines. She lives in the suburban jungles of New Jersey, USA, with her husband and two boisterous boys. RebeccaGardynLevington.com Mariona Cabassa is a native of Catalonia, Spain, who has illustrated over 80 children's books. She studied at art school in Barcelona, followed by further research in Strasbourg, France. Her many subsequent years of working as an illustrator, painter, installation maker and tattoo artist reflect her fascination with form and her desire to explore different palettes. Mariona's technique combines water-based paints, pencils and a digital touch to create rich and detailed illustrations, bursting with color and movement.

"Great for any family...and has special value as it presents a loving same sex couple as parents" – Youth Services Book Review Learn over 100 early vocabulary words with a toothy toddler and her two dads! Plus, the search for the silly woolly mammoth on each page will keep little eyes glued to the pages. Designed to support babies' natural pattern of language development, this first words book for the modern world reflects the earliest words that children learn to say. This new bilingual Bengali and English edition is just right for families looking to introduce new vocabulary to their little one! • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • Features a diverse family structure • Seek-and-find for the woolly mammoth keeps kids engaged Award-winning author Stella Blackstone has written many of Barefoot's best-selling titles, including the Bear series and the Cleo the Cat series. She has been writing for children for over twenty years. Stella lives in Somerset, UK. Sunny Scribens was born and raised outside Nashville, TN, and holds an M.A. in Classics from the University of Texas. She has written numerous titles for Barefoot Books, including several under the name Kate DePalma. Christiane Engel is an award-winning artist from northern Germany. She currently lives and works in England with her family and has illustrated several children's books.

Join a class of kids at daycare as they find numbers 1 to 10 throughout the day, at drop-off, snack time, rest time, and on the playground – then say goodbye at pickup time together! This bilingual Bengali and English book is perfect for kids and caregivers to practice counting skills and prepare for starting childcare. • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • A counting book to reinforce early math learning • Relatable setting for kids in childcare settings Mk Smith Despres is the author of the First Friends board book series, as well as Night Song and There's That Sun Again, and was named a 2024 Green Box Artist in Residence. Mk has worked as an educator for over 15 years with kids and adults with disabilities. They write, teach, and read lots of books with their family in western Massachusetts, USA. Aya Watanabe is a Japanese illustrator who loves to explore imaginary worlds and to express her inner child through art. Creating fun content for kids is her passion. She lives and works in Tokyo, Japan, with her pet caterpillars. aw-illustrations.com

"A diverse cast of children and adults is shown, and the bright colors and dark, often bold text is eye-catching. A great addition to bilingual board book collections" – School Library Journal When one toddler in a childcare setting takes all the toy animals for herself, she discovers that monopolizing all the toys can be a bit lonely. Will offering one of the animals to another child help bridge the gap? Now available in bilingual Bengali and English, this gentle exploration of early friendship helps toddlers recognize the tension between wanting everything to be "mine!" and the desire to connect with other children. • Develop early English and Bengali language skills • Relatable setting for kids in childcare settings Sumana Seeboruth writes books inspired by the natural world and her two young children. A night owl, she is most likely to be found writing when her husband and children are fast asleep. She loves music and a noisy, happy house! Sumana is based in London, UK. Ashleigh Corrin is the 2020 Ezra Jack Keats award-winning illustrator of Layla's Happiness, a Kirkus and SLJ star reviewed children's book. Her first published work was with Enchanted Lion Books in A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader. Ashleigh lives in Virginia with her family.

Little ones love things that go! A car is fast, and a bike is slow. A boat is fast, and a raft is slow. A rocket is fast, and hot air balloon is slow. Introduce first words in Bengali and English, and learn about different modes of transportation while comparing slow-moving vehicles with speedy machines. • Develop early English and Bengali skills • Shows different modes of transportation Britta Teckentrup is an award-winning illustrator, author and fine artist. She was born in Germany and moved to London in 1988 to study illustration and fine arts at St Martin's College and the Royal College of Art. Her technique is a combination of handmade printed textures and digital collage. Her awards include a nomination for the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis and two special mentions for the BolognaRagazzi Award. Britta's work has been exhibited frequently in London galleries and at art fairs all over the world. She now lives and works in Berlin with her husband, son and their cat.

"Mindful play can be used to focus children's minds on the task at hand and help them get centred and ready for the next part of the day, whether that's further play, a trip to the shop or even the beginning of the bedtime routine. A good resource for parents" – Inis magazine, Children's Books Ireland Help toddlers focus - in both Bengali and English - as they transition from one activity to the next. This sturdy yet stylish bilingual board book is designed to enable caregivers to practice a mindful movement exercise with children as young as 2 years old. Written by the award-winning author of the bestselling Mindful Kids activity deck, Whitney Stewart, in collaboration with early childhood development specialist Stefanie Paige Wieder, M.S. Ed., this board book uses simple, straightforward instructions and bright illustrations to encourage imaginative play alongside mindful focus. • Develop early English and Bengali skills • Kid-friendly mindfulness exercises and instructions • Features a diverse cast of characters with different levels of abilities Whitney Stewart puts her heart, mind and feet into her work. She has trekked in a Himalayan snowstorm with Sir Edmund Hillary, climbed to remote Buddhist monasteries in Tibet, interviewed the Dalai Lama in India and sat for days in meditation retreats. She is the author of many travel articles, and of both fiction and nonfiction for children. When she is not writing or traveling, she teaches mindfulness and meditation to children and adults. Rocio Alejandro has illustrated many children's books published both in her home country of Argentina and abroad. In 2017, she won the X Compostela Prize for her book, La huerta de Simón.