Dreadtastic. What could dreadtastic be? A little imagination led me to the right answer – dreadful + fantastic. Aha!
I love books that play with words, as well as books that feature characters that enjoy words. I recently read (and wrote about) Friends Behind Walls, and the word games we played when we read it at my reading programme.
The first book I read by Shabnam Minwalla is about writing and words too – Lucky Girl. Even as I read it, I planned how I would use it for my reading programme. It produced giggles and fun, poems, new book covers and crazy recipes. I was all set to enjoy Nimmi’s Dreadtastic Detective Days!
Nimmi has an overactive imagination. When she is sick, overactive turns to hyperactive and she feels that the pineapples on her curtains have murderous intentions. The worst thing about being sick, however, is not malevolent pineapples; it’s the fact that she isn’t in school to investigate the case of the bursting beanbags!
Nimmi’s Dreadtastic Detective Days is funny, dramatic, and good, wholesome entertainment. Nimmi is a character after my heart. Armed with a book (never mind if it’s not a Murder Book) to keep a log of clues and evidence, she is convinced that she can solve the mystery of the bursting beanbags, even if the trail is cold. Amateur detectives must start somewhere after all, and though I would not say she is confident; she certainly is optimistic.
On the other hand, she is terrified of Cookaroo, her school’s very own Masterchef competition.
I love the bundle of contradictions that make her who she is!
Nimmi is the kind of character that you want to keep reading; I’m sure the whole Nimmi series will be fun. A quick afterthought – I also loved that this was not the first book in the series, but it did not leave me confused and floundering to figure out who was who!
| Title | Nimmi’s Dreadtastic Detective Days |
| Author | Shabnam Minwalla |
| Tags | School Fiction, Middle-Grade |
| Rating (out of 5) | 4 |
| Age-group | 10+ |
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