IT IS the early 1940s and nine-year-old Sabby lives in Calcutta where he attends a small first school and, when alone, watches the colourful world of India go by.

He seems to have a charmed life with a home and family he adores and who are happy to hold on to British habits as well as keeping their Indian values, but when their way of life is threatened by the Japanese during the Second World War Sabby is sent away to boarding school in the north of India.

Here he learns the harsh realities of a strict teaching regime and bullying by his fellow pupils; gradually he leaves his secure loving family life behind. Sabby joins his so-called friends in their disregard of animal life, in plans of revenge and malicious whisperings. When a tragic event occurs Sabby is left scarred for life wondering if he could have prevented it.

This novel is beautifully told and reminds us of those times in childhood when we began to question our actions; experiencing those differences between right and wrong that turn us into adults. Here we feel the coldness of human hearts enacting their dramas against the drying heat of India; it is a great read that lingers on.