Rosa in a Rush to solve the Mystery of the Missing Dahlias! [Review]

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Title: ROSA IN A RUSH (Hook Book)
Author: Nandita Da Cunha
Illustrator: Shubhangi Chetan
Publisher: Duckbill Books
Type: Paperback
Length: 40 Pages
Age recommendation: 5 to 8 years

Rosa wakes up to find Pai’s prized purple dahlias missing. She sets on a mission to find the culprit before Pai realizes that they are gone and slumps like a wilted flower himself. One of the first hook books which Daksh has read, this book checks all the boxes for early readers.

It has simple easy text and large font size which enables independent reading. Also, the use of certain phrases such as “PAWNK! PAWNK!”, “Splish! Splash!” encouraged Daksh to read it aloud with different intonations.
Indian context which he was easily able to relate to. I realized for the first time that in the Konkan region, people call their dad as “Pai”. It’s never too late to learn something new. 😉
The element of mystery kept Dakshu engaged throughout. Now he is at an age where he wants to know the “Why” of everything. So as Rosa tries to deduce who must have taken Pai’s dahlias and why, the missing pieces fall into place and form a complete picture in his mind as well.
Beautiful illustrations – there is so much attention to detail including the names of houses, shops and the items in them. Loved the whooshing of the cycle when Rosa goes off in a rush.
Knowledge about nature – Nandita’s unique style of writing about the environment and nature is reflected in this book and gives enough details about what suits best for growing dahlias in your home garden. There is also mention about compost which caught Dakshu’s attention since he could relate to what he is currently learning at school.
My favourite part of the book – information on how to give directions! The below picture says it all.