Misfit Madhu
by Divya Anand
Publisher: Penguin Random House
‘Misfit Madhu’ is an excellent saga of class VII student Madhu who went on to become ‘Maker Madhu’ from being ‘Misfit Madhu’. A shy, timid and naïve girl, usually seen as a loser by all her classmates became popular overnight for her innovative app, ‘School Santhe’. Though the occurrence of that instant popularity was thrilling, it came with its own repercussions. Spending whole of Class VI vacations on building an app through coding was something Madhu loved. Her best friend Noor being its sole user, she never imagined for it go viral at the speed of light. But when it did, she liked the limelight on her. But it turned out to be a happiness that disappeared in a short span when the app was used for a purpose that was illegal and the later part of the story revolves around resolving that issue which eventually leads her to greater benefits.
This young coding genius is unpopular and a misfit both at school and at home. She turns out to be an exemplary student when hard situations are put in front of her. When morality and honesty are put to test, she succeeded with flying colours which eventually helped her in getting what she desired .
The author chooses the best possible way to describe this story to the target audience. For a child reading Maker Madhu’s tale can surely take in some inspiration and as the saga progresses, they will surely enjoy reading it as it reaches an interesting pitstop which involves solving a mystery. The concepts such as honesty, determination, perseverance and hard work are carefully incorporated so that it’s in the absorbable form when young minds read the tale.
The whole experience of reading this beautiful story is enhanced by the brilliant illustrations that are crafted so well that the characters are imprinted in the minds of the readers which allows for more exploration of the details. All the characters and minute aspects are highlighted, leading to creative imagination.
It also throws light on the lives of children who are stepping their adolescence age. The age where everything feels weird and school bullies can have traumatic impressions on the rest of their lives. The importance of having friends and humane concerns towards each other is also shown through a character from the story.
There are a lot of characters and names that come and go throughout the story that sometimes might create confusion, but it is manageable. There are also elements of light humour that keeps the reading lively and also brings in that burst of laughter and smile in certain serious scenarios. It becomes an automatic page turner because of the strong storyline and engaging content. The rich vocabulary and the idiomatic phrases used by the author makes the target audience improve upon their language skills too.
Each one has their own strong points that one must improve upon and be proud of, no matter how dejected it feels at times and that’s what author went on to reiterate to young and tender minds who read Madhu’s tale.
It is surely a must read, especially for children who will love Misfit Madhu and adults reading it can enjoy the sense of nostalgia remembering their school days.