Livin Vincent is an ardent critic of religion and a passionate follower of science. He loves his somersaults, cricket games and bike rides but despises everything irrational.
This no-nonsense line of thought perhaps summarises the crux of his debut novel. "Why Don't Elephants Lay Eggs" is a feel-good read with a gripping narration that leaves you satisfied in less than 200 pages.
From bicycle races to exam halls and evening curfews at home, the book has a lot to ignite nostalgia in young adults who spent their childhoods playing cricket and attending carnivals. Unlike today where any piece of information is just a WhatsApp text away, young minds of the previous generation had no choice but to wait for daybreak to pass on any news. Undoubtedly, the author attempts to shake up the "90s kids" emotion, which is a hot-selling subject in the cyber era of memes and coming-home videos.
Set in the backdrop of hilly Nenmara, we see Ian and his friends whine about tough exams and worthless classmates as the countdown to the much-awaited vacation begin. The author is frank as he elaborately reveals the character of each member of Ian's gang, as they abuse, fight, cheat in exams and try to impress girls. They are attracted to the teeny tiny things that the grown-ups try to hide from them and are desperate to break free of the countless written and unwritten laws they are bound to follow.
The story revolves around the life of Ian David, son of a retired military doctor who suffers from retrograde amnesia. Ian has little or no memory of his yesteryears and at times wonders where his skill on bicycles comes from. A strict dad whose routine includes spending time at his son's study table and mother who has made it a habit to cook dishes he despises make life difficult for him at times. There is a local bully he should stay away from and the girl nearby with whom he shares a love-hate relationship.
Like the name of the novel, questions lead the story forward. Life prospered in Nenmara while settlements around struggled. A foreign-educated agriculturalist helped the farmers of the land turn around their fortunes before her untimely death. Rumours connected her demise to the local myth of the snake-headed demon and her determination to liberate the land of superstitions. As he includes the village snake-man in his vacation agenda, little Ian had little idea that it will lead to his own entangled past coming after him...
This book is a perfect Christmas gift for any young mind in whom you are planning to sow the seeds of reading this season and a light-hearted weekend delight for adults.