The pandemic has encouraged more children to turn to reading. To avoid excessive screen time, parents also motivate their wards to turn to books.
From touch and feel storybooks to advanced fiction, the demand is varied.
Metrolife found some physical and online libraries, where one could borrow books for their young ones.
Kahaani Box
Kahaani Box started in 2017, is located at Begur Road. It saw more enquiries during the lockdown and has seen a 40% hike in members in the last year.
Neha Jain, founder, says, “Earlier children were in school for almost eight hours but now school is for barely four hours online. They have a lot of time to spare and parents want them to use time efficiently.”
The library has 25,000 books including 2,000 books for adults. “We offer pan India delivery and pick up of books. We have members from across 19 states in India,” says Neha.
Membership plans start from Rs 400 per month.
Contact: 99008 38500
Thinkbox
Located in Malleshpalya, Thinkbox Children’s Library has been around for 13 years. It is a book and toy library.
Bhakti Shah, founder says, “We have more than 8,500 handpicked books, which were picked up from publisher’s warehouses.” The space also has 400 books for adults.
The collection includes glitter books, bubble books, touch and feel books, books with sounds, science magazines sourced from Singapore, books on history and money management, and fiction.
Books are predominantly English, with some titles in Hindi and bilingual books (English and Hindi). “Lot of parents and children used Kindle and audiobooks during the lockdown, which brought our membership down in 2020 and 2021. Luckily, membership has picked up now,” she adds.
Books can be home delivered and picked up from the library.
Membership plans start at Rs 580.
Contact: 97428 49955
MyMitra
Started in 2007, MyMitra Children’s Library houses more than 6,000 books.
The collection also includes cloth pictures and board books.
Memberships went up by at least 20% since the lockdown, says Janhavi Lakshminarayanan, founder.
“Our most sought-after books are Harry Potter, books by Sudha Murthy, level reading books and Enid Blyton’s works,” she says.
The collection includes English, Kannada and a few Hindi books. It also has a small selection for adults.
Membership plans start from Rs 250 per month.
Contact: 99454 99737
Cosy Nook
Cosy Nook Library has two branches — in Raheja Residency, Koramangala, and Koramangala first block.
Started by Radhika Sathe Mantri and Sudeshna Shome Ghosh, the library collectively now has 6,000 books.
“During the lockdown, we got an app created for us, through which people could book slots to reserve books. We still have slots, so that crowding can be avoided,” says Radhika.
With members from Vyalikaval, Banashankari, and as far as Vidyaranapura, the library uses Dunzo, Porter or courier services to send books to readers. “Enid Blyton, Hook books, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson are picked most. Fantasy literature and books by Indian authors are popular too,” she adds.
The collection mostly includes English books, along with some Kannada, Tamil, and Hindi ones.
Plans start at Rs 2,500 (two books at a time) for six months.
Contact: 95131 19420
Online libraries
Little One’s Bookhub
Located in Chikka Banaswadi, the online library delivers books. The collection includes 1,200 books — touch and feel books, puppet books, sound books, comics and fiction.
Started in 2019, the library has seen increased readership after the lockdowns, says Kishori Bekal, owner.
She explains, “Initially people were scared of borrowing books, but seeing that we took intense precautionary methods encouraged many. We have seen a 20% increase in members.”
Most read books are by Julian Donaldson, the Naisha series and Enid Blyton.
The collection has English, Hindi and Kannada books. Books are delivered by staff or by Shiprocket or Speed Post (minimum of 10 books).
Registration charges are Rs 50 a month and rent per book is Rs 25.
Contact: 99725 68804
The Dream Library
An online library started in 2019, The Dream Library, Doddanekundi has 1,500 books.
The collection includes 80% fiction books and 20% non-fiction books including books on space.
Srividya Vishwanathan, founder, started the library because of her family’s passion for children’s literature. “Being a mother to young sons, I found books to be a meaningful and fun way to spend time together,” she says.
Most borrowed books recently are Geronimo Stilton, Wimpy Kid and books by Roald Dahl. “Harry Potter and Enid Blyton stay classic choices,” she says.
Plans start from Rs 400 (eight books a month).
Contact: 99161 66679