Em and The Big Hoom
Ratings11
Average rating4.3
15
Ratings11
Average rating4.3
In a one-bedroom-hall-kitchen in Mahim, Bombay, Imelda Mendes-Em to her children-holds her family in thrall with her flamboyance, her compelling imagination, her unspoken love, her sometimes cruel candour. Through this, her husband, to whom she was once 'buttercup', her son and daughter learn to cope with her mania and her frequent wish to die. A searing and at times darkly funny, study of mental illness, and also a deeply moving story about love and family relationships.
Reviews with the most likes.
Wow. What a read. Like reading a story about someone who could be my aunt. Or my own mother - had I been able to bear sticking around... Exhausting and beautiful
Its not often one comes across a book about any kind of mental illness. That too written with sensitivity and from the point of view of family members. It is a love story too, narrated by the child while managing the affected parent. The reader is a part of the family and feels each episode keenly. It was an excellent read without any depressing bits one would usually associate with mental and emotional trauma. Must read.
Em is for empathy! What a beautifully written book on a difficult subject.
