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tctimlin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Through the eyes of our young narrator, we see life in an Indian squatter slum where parents are working just to keep above water, and larger societal forces are either threatening to bulldoze their homes or ignoring their existence altogether. When one of his classmates goes missing, Jay and his friends determine to become detectives as the police refuse to investigate. As time goes on and Jay amasses clues that take him nowhere, more and more children disappear. Outraged adults with no power to take on the police find their community broken apart by religion (Hindu v. Muslim) and economics. Although the story is told through the eyes of a young boy who believes equally fervently in the powers of djinns and abilities of television detectives, this novel presents a vibrant, well-articulated view of modern India and the stark differences between the lives of the scavenger children on the trash heaps and the “hi-fi madams” in the gated penthouses.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Grief, and Abandonment
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