The Red Heifer (Peggy Oppong Novel)

Excerpt:

Nathan had just completed the dreaded chore of bathing a very reluctant Clara when he instinctively turned. His heart sank as he did so. Allen, Clara’s five-year-old twin brother, had emptied the contents of the talcum powder on himself and all over the new carpet he had laid out on the bedroom floor just the previous weekend.
He glanced at the clock and his anxiety increased. It was a quarter to six and he had to be at the office before eight.
He had been up since 5am preparing for the day. He warmed the rice porridge he had prepared the previous evening and laid out the children’s uniforms on the sofa. He also packed his briefcase with all the relevant documents he would need in the course of the day and he had even put hot water in the giant flask all in an effort to have an early start, but the children simply refused to co-operate with him.