The Scent of Roses
Series: Hole Book
MY THOUGHTS
“I don’t know if I’m his friend but he has decided to be mine.”
This line from The Scent of Roses hit me hard. Simple, heartfelt, and quietly poignant, exactly something a child may say. But that was not the only thing that blew me away about this book.
The Scent of Roses is set in Kashmir valley, surrounded by the deep-rooted issues that plague families. Sajad struggles with schoolwork and friends. He cannot understand how Jabbar can be so carefree and happy all the time when he struggles with school work too. At home, Sajad is unable to sleep at night and his happiest memories are his father singing or patting him to sleep. One day, his mother tells him the story of Bram Bram Chok. It terrifies Sajad but he also has a name for the storm raging in his chest. When his father gets taken away by a jeep, late one night Bram Bram Chok begins to rear his head. Small things begin to set him off – Jabbar’s jolly demeanour, barbed wire on his way home, his mother’s quiet tears, and the fear and sadness in the eyes of all his classmates whose fathers have gone missing just like his Abu. But it is his grandfather’s feeble prayer that he will one day inherit their 102-year-old hand-distilled rose water shop that sends him over the edge and makes him declare that he wants to get far away from it all.
The Scent of Roses like Adithi’s Boy, Bear sensitively weaves a story that forces the reader to face reality and see it through the eyes of a little boy. Often times we present harsh situations to children from a grownups perspective, but it is important to show them that life is hard and though children are forced to live it, they have the power (and positivity!) to change it.
Krishna Bala Shenoi’s illustrations of Bram Bram Chok are breathtaking and add an extra dimension to the story where Bram Bram Chok and the scent of roses come alive for the reader. To an untrained eye like mine, I would guess he is playing with light and shadow even in black and white illustrations and would love to see the book in full colour.
This is another smash-hit Hole Book and definitely one you need to add to yours and your child’s collection today!
If you think your child would enjoy this book, you can buy it here →
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