From the moment go, I knew I was going to have fun reading demon dentist. I felt like a small kid again, marveling at the illustrations, feeling excited about turning the page, trying to predict what’s going to happen next, rooting for the young protagonist, though also a bit worried for him, yet feeling a sense of calm, because I knew in the end, the good would conquer the evil. That’s the beauty of YA genre, it is optimistic, and believable.
From the first page, this book brought a smile to my face. It is cute, sweet, funny, and immensely enjoyable. It reminded me of Roald Dahl and Ruskin Bond’s stories. As usual with young adult fiction, this story too has a vicious villain, an admirable hero, his smart-ass friend, some adults who are annoyed by kids, a few adults who believe them and lots of magic. The highlight of the book is the loving relationship between the father and son, which truly touched my heart. Their love and care pours out as they happily share a single biscuit for dinner, go on numerous adventures on a magic carpet despite bound to a wheelchair and protect each other against all odds.
Apart from the doting father and son duo, there are a horde of interesting characters that make the story even furthermore lively – a school principal constantly at the brink of a nervous breakdown, a drama teacher hell-bent on teaching his class the importance of improv, a policeman who is eternally hungry, a social worker with a wild sense of fashion and shares the policeman’s penchant for eating, a grown man who still believes in the tooth-fairy, a tomboy girl who definitely doesn’t need a boy to protect her, a new dentist with pitch black eyes and shining white teeth and a mysterious tooth snatcher. Oh, and of course, a lot of made-up words!
Starting in a dentist’s room, followed by a 3 chapters long chase in the school premises and ending in a deserted coal mine, this story is a simple and entertaining ride. Although it becomes a tad bit tedious near the ending, the story soon recovers its happy and humorous self and leaves you smiling as you close the book.
Enjoy the book and then read it out to your kids!
