![The Great Indian Safari… Let’s Rap! [Review]](https://www.kidsbookcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/the-great-indian-safari-cover.jpg)
Book Title: The Great Indian Safari
Author: Arefa Tehsin
Illustrator: Mohit Suneja
Publisher: Puffin Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House
Type: Paperback
Length: 96 pages
Recommended Age: 7 years+
In summer this year, we happened to go on several animal safaris in America, which obviously made Neil question the lack of animals in India. Imagine his surprise then when he received a book named “The great Indian safari” for review!
The book stars Charred the Bard (a jungle crow who insists he is different from his city cousins, and tells us how we can distinguish them), who takes us on a trip across the wildlife parks in India, from Kaziranga in the north east to Lakshadweep in the west. As you fly with him across India, he tells you amazing facts about animals including their habitat and diet.
I’ve lost count of the number of animal related books Neil has read, yet this book stands out – Mr Caw Caw (as Neil calls him) conveys animal facts through rap songs and brings animals to life by narrating a scene, rather than just dry facts. The reader enters the safari (and learns safari rules) and takes part in the cobra chasing a rat snake or the egrets sitting on top of a rhino!
Neil’s favourite part of the book, apart from the rap songs, was learning some mind blowing facts:
– Whale sharks can be found in India (in Lakshadweep)
– Daddy gharials look after the babies, by keeping them on their back (and we thought breaking gender stereotypes is a human quality!)
– Baby snakes are called snakelets! (how cute!)
It has been wonderful seeing Neil immersed in a book full of facts. The author has done a great job of weaving animal antics and funny habits with science jargon like mammals. She has also ensured that she explains every technical word very clearly, and engagingly. For example: I am a crow, a bird not a mammal. If you have an animal lover at home, do get this book for them and watch them compose rap songs about everything!
Other books by the same author can be found here.
If you enjoyed the review and wish to go on this great Indian safari, you might want to order your own copy from Amazon (kbc affiliate link),
CLICK & BUY NOW!Disclaimer: Amardeep and Neil are a part of the #kbcReviewerSquad and received these books as review copies from the publisher via kbc.
