Tiger Skin Rug

October 15, 2021
When 11-year-old Lal Patel and his family move to Scotland from India, he expects they will move into an urban apartment, not a bungalow in the country. Although the rest of his family loves their beautiful new home, Lal can't shake the feeling that it is haunted. His suspicions are confirmed when he finds out that his younger brother, Dilip, has been spending all of his time in the drawing room whispering to a tiger skin rug that, when in Dilip's company, becomes a live tiger. Along with their new neighbor, a White girl named Jenny, the boys befriend the beast, who uses a secret language to tell Dilip about a promise the wild cat has yet to keep. In order to help their new friend, the children end up on a journey that magically takes them from Scotland to London to Mumbai, where they meet a conservationist who struggles with a family secret. All the while, the children and the tiger are pursued by a mysterious man in a snake jacket whose devious intentions could derail their journey--or cost them their lives. The book's plot is fast-paced and the language is lyrical. The characterizations, however, are disappointing. Lal and Dilip's cultural identity is only superficially realized, their connection to India mostly consisting of references to food and Lal's obsession with cricket. Furthermore, Lal's and Dilip's homesickness is referenced but never really shown, rendering their eventual love for Scotland less than credible. A fast-paced fantasy-thriller undercut by unconvincing characters. (Fantasy. 9-12)

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October 25, 2021
Lal Patel, nearly 12, and his younger brother Dilip have just moved to Scotland from India with their parents and maternal grandmother for their father’s work. Unlike their modern housing compound in India, their new home, Graystanes, is a large, fully furnished bungalow in a small town, and feels haunted. Though both boys are homesick, things start to look up when they meet their exuberant, white freckled neighbor Jenny, who’s eager to show them around town. Concurrently, the tiger skin rug in their drawing room starts to converse with Dilip, temporarily becoming an apparently resurrected tiger when it does. Bringing Jenny into their secret, the brothers decide to help the tiger fulfill the promise he had made right before he was poached. Soon, the group is magically traveling to London and then India on the rug in search of the tiger’s promise. The children meet new people, solve riddles, and finally help deliver the tiger’s message. Though the text, narrated by Lal, includes some cultural inaccuracies, Haig’s characters are lively in this swiftly paced fantastical debut. Ages 8–12.

December 1, 2021

Gr 3-7-After brothers Lal and Dilip Patel move from India to Scotland with their parents and Naniji, they quickly begin to miss home desperately. Everything in Scotland is strange-especially the tiger skin rug in their new drawing room that seems almost to move when the light hits it just right. So when Dilip discovers the tiger can move, the two jump at the chance to help him keep a long-kept promise and hopefully find their own way home again. Readers are sure to devour this magical, mysterious adventure of a debut, equal parts gentle and exhilarating. Lal and Dilip's longing for the familiarity of home resonates, as do the lessons they learn along the way. VERDICT A natural recommendation for fans of emotionally resonant adventure books, and authors such as Kate DiCamillo, Sara Pennypacker, and Katherine Applegate.-Kaitlin Frick, Darien Lib., CT

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