ABOUT THE BOOK

Only those who really badly need an answer would dare to go to the witch. But Amra has done something bad and he really does need to know if he’s in trouble.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW

• This is part of Duckbill’s hOle series, and a worthy addition to the list. Quite different from the others theme-wise, this one is set in a Bhil forest community and based on a real incident narrated by the conservationist Raza H. Tehsin, the author’s father.
• The story is a delightful day-in-the-life-of kind of story, centred around how Amra’s day goes terribly wrong, but maybe his guilty conscience is playing a few tricks on him.
• Amra’s friend Veerma is absolutely delightful with his playacting – be it as Baniya Bajrangi the moneylender or Dholi Bai the herb-seller or Laxman Singh the Daku.
• The village setting, including descriptions of the food the Bhils eat, the clothes they wear, the flora and fauna of the place, add charm to the book. So do the delightful, lively illustrations, which magically appear just where a reader is likely to enjoy seeing them!
• The life lesson in the book – that no problem is as big as it seems or insurmountable – is a valuable one for young readers.

CONCLUSION

A funny and well-written story that most children (and adults) will relate to. There is a wonderful, quirky and diverse cast of characters as well.