Chained

Gr 4–6—Ten-year-old Hastin lives in rural India in a thatched-roof mud hut with his widowed mother, Parvati, and younger sister, Chanda. When Chanda falls ill and is hospitalized in the city, Parvati must borrow money to pay for the expenses, and young Hastin determines to repay that loan by securing work as an elephant caretaker. His new employer, Timir, is a mean-tempered taskmaster who transports the boy to a distant jungle and orders him to catch an elephant for his future circus. While Hastin hates the idea of trapping one, he becomes more troubled once Nandita, the chained animal, is brought to the circus grounds. In spite of his loving care of her, the trainer stabs her with a sharp hook to teach her tricks. The one person Hastin trusts is Ne Min, Timir's Burmese cook, who befriends him and seems to have much knowledge of the ways of elephants. He supports Hastin with food, medicine, and sage advice on caring for Nandita. When Timir justly suspects the boy of trying to run away, he penalizes him by lengthening his term of employment. Then Nadita is put in leg shackles, making hope of escape more remote, but Hastin soon proves he is brave enough to defend his own freedom and that of his beloved elephant. With a well-knit plot, vivid setting, and tightening web of suspense, this novel is both an affecting animal story and a well-paced adventure.—Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT