This children’s book is a pleasant surprise and a quick paced, easy read. It begins innocuously with Khalid running after their black-eyed kitten, Gupshup, who characteristically is fast on her feet, is soon lost within the walls of the Sanganer Open Prison. The rest of the story is about Khalid’s attempts to find his missing cat Gupshup.
The surprising elements are the well-timed and planned efforts to break down perceptions related to open prisons, prisoners, the lives that they lead, and a brave, courageous attempt to normalize such lives. And in so doing, Arefa Tehsin tries splendidly to mainstream the marginalized, by digging a little deeper into their everyday lives, that truly require the same discipline and routine similar to everyone else that live their lives outside prison walls.