Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line

Locations
Call Number: Fiction / Anappara, Deepa, Adult Book / Fiction / General / Anappara, Deepa
On Shelf At: Downtown Library, Pittsfield Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	Due 05-25-2024
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Anappara, Deepa	4-week checkout	Due 05-21-2024

"Based on a true story--Nine-year-old Jai watches too many reality police shows, thinks he's smarter than his friend Pari (even though she gets the best grades), and considers himself to be a better boss than Faiz (even though Faiz is the one with a job). When a classmate goes missing, Jai decides to use the crime-solving skills he has picked up from TV to find him. He asks Pari and Faiz to be his assistants and together they draw up lists of people to interview and places to visit. But what begins as a game turns sinister as other children start disappearing from their neighborhood. Jai, Pari, and Faiz have to confront terrified parents, an indifferent police force, and their fears of soul-snatching djinns. As the disappearances edge ever closer to home, the lives of Jai and his friends will never be the same again. At times exuberant, at times heartbreaking, Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line traces the unfolding of a tragedy while capturing the fierce warmth and resilience of a community forged in times of trouble"-- Provided by publisher.

REVIEWS & SUMMARIES

Booklist Review
Publishers Weekly Review
Summary / Annotation
Excerpt
Author Notes

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

My favorite book of the year submitted by jaromatorio on July 24, 2020, 11:22am Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line' manages to be beautiful, buoyant, and funny, all while exploring some of the most serious, heatbreaking issues facing those living in India's poor, urban communities. Narrated by nine-year-old Jai, a cheeky little boy living in one such area, 'Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line' is the story of Jai's and his community's quest for answers when children in his neighborhood, or 'basti', begin to go missing.⠀
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Though the search for these disappeared children starts off as a fun spy adventure for Jay and his best friends Pari and Faiz, the game quickly turns more serious when additional children go missing and the trio are forced to confront police corruption, sectarian violence, and the possibility that something far more nefarious than originally thought is happening in their community.⠀
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Though this story didn't end the way I hoped, upon reading the author's Afterward, I think it was absolutely the right conclusion. Though I can't elaborate much more for fear of giving everything away, I will say that Deepa Anappara's time as a reporter working in places like Jai's basti made her the perfect person to write this book. Ms. Anappara was able to capture the complex social, political, and moral issues facing folks living in such areas, all while maintaining their humanity at the forefront, and not exploiting them and turning their struggles into "tragedy porn".⠀
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'Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line' has it all: the writing was incredible-you could picture so vividly all of the sights, sounds and smells of the basti and its inhabitants. And the story was riveting-the mystery was a real page turner, and the fact that it was narrated so delightfully from Jai's childish yet insightful perspective made it unique to many mysteries I've read. And finally, this book made me ponder some pretty deep issues without even realizing it-I honestly haven't been able to stop thinking about this book since I finished it.⠀
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1000/10 please do yourself a favor and read this book!!