Cure for a Crime - Roopa Farooki

goodreads.com

A  compelling read for parents and kids alike.

I remember watching Roopa Farooki deliver the keynote address at the short story festival to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Asianwriter way back in 2017. I loved her speech so much that a printout is now pinned to my board, a ready reckoner when the writerly confidence hits a nosedive.

Out of her six literary novels, I have read "Flying man" and enjoyed it, only realising later that it was a true story that had been crafted into literary fiction.

I have been following her articles and admire them for her candour and style. And now writing literary novels published in twenty countries, instead staying put in her comfort zone, she went to a medical school and recently emerged as a qualified junior doctor. What an awe inspiring achievement considering she managed this with four children. If that was not enough, her new children's book was announced early this year, a product of her scribblings during rotations. This woman never stops, I thought.

The Gist:

Tulip and Ali live with their medic mother. But life changed ever since their mother's boyfriend Brian Sturgeon moved in. She is now tired all the time and they suspect Brian of drugging her. They are determined to find out what he is up to and find allies in their grandmother Nan-Nan and school friends, Zac and Jay.

What I liked:

• The story gets into action straightaway. There is no preamble about setting and laying out the story. Farooki is aware of her readers and their short attention spans.

• Yet another plus is the acknowledgement in the beginning of the book. My "nearly-10"-year-old daughter read it and was intrigued enough to read the first chapter. She was immediately hooked.

• The twins are familiar with the hospital environnment, medical basics thanks to their mother. I liked the way it works at various levels. On one hand there is a cracking good story that keeps its readers guessing on the other hand there is a bit of education about simple, basic first aid and also scrubbing in (somethign that is in vogue now!). Mini Medix blog is a novel technique without sounding preachy.  

• The voice of the children is brilliant. That was one of the reasons, my daughter got hooked right away. The story also reflects contemporary life in its entirety - children of working mothers and dealing with cancer as a child. I felt it was very nicely handled.

• Plot is paced well, there are twists and turns and although young children are good at inferring (as I learnt from my 10-year-old) Farooki is good at staying one step ahead them.

Overall, a very good read. I enjoyed and passed it on to my daughter wondering if she was old enough to enjoy it. She gave me the book back within few days of bedtime reading.  I now know the reason for her grogginess in the morning.

I wished I had something like this growing up. My daughter and I will be looking forward to more about their twins and their adventures!