Em
and the Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto
Review
by M (adult fiction)
Em
and the Big Hoom features the most scintillating dialogue and moves at a pace
that had me happily clambering.
Em
and the Big Hoom is a novel (which makes it fiction?), though it reads very
much like an entertaining yet deeply heartfelt memoir. This is a novel about
mental illness. I’m not sure I’ve read many of these for fear of them being
drearily and saddeningly depressing. Em and the Big Hoom is not like that. It
truly is a….riot!
Written
from the young adult son’s perspective, he presents a story which is both a
celebration of his mother, Imelda’s infuriating mad life and an attempt to
understand both her and her relationship with his father. Among other names,
his parents are known as Em and the Big Hoom – I love that!
Variably
diagnosed with schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder, Em just accepts herself as
mad, and everyone around her just goes up and down with her. It’s a vibrant but
rough ride for everyone, but particularly full of laughs for the reader.
The
novel is set in 1960s Bombay, India and the family are anglophile Catholics.
These add a colourful and engaging context to the story.
Highly
recommended.
Publication
details: Viking (Penguin), May 2014, London, hardback
This
edition: digital review copy from the publisher
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