A moving tale of a young person’s awakening as an animal advocate.
In Srinivas’ middle-grade novel, an Indian boy tries to save his animal friends from poor treatment.
As this story opens, 11-year-old Rohan suddenly loses his mother, Padma, in an accident, leaving him and his grieving father, Dhruv, alone in a subdued existence in Mumbai. Dhruv is virtually destroyed by the loss and takes a chance on a drastic change, moving with Rohan from Mumbai to Chennai, where they settle in a well-manicured apartment community. At first, the change seems like a good one, but soon local schoolboys bully Rohan. He finds relief from an unexpected source, befriending a cow he names Jaya, and the animal’s peaceful kindness changes his own perspective on life. (“A rush of sensation jolts through him—a blend of joy and awe.”) This connection also opens Rohan’s eyes to the casual cruelties that many other animals experience in Chennai: “Innocent animals—cows, dogs, and many more,” he realizes, “are dying on the streets while people rush by, oblivious to the damage they cause.” His feelings of compassion only increase after Jaya gives birth to a calf named Nandi, whose welfare becomes the boy’s personal cause: “All the animals in our entire country are at risk,” he notes. “If they’re sick, it affects everyone.” Srinivas skillfully uses young Rohan’s gradual awakening to the plight of nonhumans in his city as a vehicle for drama. In her preface, she effectively notes that overproduction, abuse, neglect, urbanization, and illegal slaughter have worked to erode the protections of India’s Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960. As Rohan’s outrage and determination grow, so will many readers’; it all naturally proceeds to a heartfelt and nuanced closing act. Gautham’s simple pen-and-ink illustrations add charm to a story that both adults and young readers will find compelling.
A moving tale of a young person’s awakening as an animal advocate.Pub Date: Nov. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9798889262015
Page Count: 292
Publisher: Manuscripts LLC
Review Posted Online: Jan. 7, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Though usually cast as the trickster, Coyote is more victim than victimizer, making this a nice complement to other Coyote...
Two republished tales by a Greco-Cherokee author feature both folkloric and modern elements as well as new illustrations.
One of the two has never been offered south of the (Canadian) border. In “Coyote Sings to the Moon,” the doo-wop hymn sung nightly by Old Woman and all the animals except tone-deaf Coyote isn’t enough to keep Moon from hiding out at the bottom of the lake—until she is finally driven forth by Coyote’s awful wailing. She has been trying to return to the lake ever since, but that piercing howl keeps her in the sky. In “Coyote’s New Suit” he is schooled in trickery by Raven, who convinces him to steal the pelts of all the other animals while they’re bathing, sends the bare animals to take clothes from the humans’ clothesline, and then sets the stage for a ruckus by suggesting that Coyote could make space in his overcrowded closet by having a yard sale. No violence ensues, but from then to now humans and animals have not spoken to one another. In Eggenschwiler’s monochrome scenes Coyote and the rest stand on hind legs and (when stripped bare) sport human limbs. Old Woman might be Native American; the only other completely human figure is a pale-skinned girl.
Though usually cast as the trickster, Coyote is more victim than victimizer, making this a nice complement to other Coyote tales. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-55498-833-4
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
Starting with a lonely slice of pizza pictured on the cover and the first page, Thornhill launches into a wide-ranging study of the history and culture of food—where it comes from, how to eat it and what our food industries are doing to the planet. It’s a lot to hang on that slice of pizza, but there are plenty of interesting tidbits here, from Clarence Birdseye’s experiments with frozen food to how mad cow disease causes the brain to turn spongy to industrial food production and global warming. Unfortunately, the volume is designed like a bad high-school yearbook. Most pages are laid out in text boxes, each containing a paragraph on a discrete topic, but with little in the way of an organizing theme to tie together the content of the page or spread. Too many colors, too much jumbled-together information and total reliance on snippets of information make this a book for young readers more interested in browsing than reading. Kids at the upper edge of the book's range would be better served by Richie Chevat's adaptation of Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma (2009). (Nonfiction. 8-12)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-897349-96-0
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Maple Tree Press
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2010
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