She knows she is unwell, but doesn’t know how to help herself, while the Big Hoom stands out as the silent, selfless support on which the while family leans on. The narrator’s mother, Em (Imelda) and father, the Big Hoom (called so because of the ‘Hoom’ sound he makes while talking) are the main characters.Įm shocks you from the very beginning with her wrist cutting, pill popping, electric shock treatments that leave scars on her head, beedi smoking, voices in the head and her stories to the children while admitted at the hospital. And there are tiny illustrations (more like doodles) inside too that accurately depict how muddled up Em’s mind is. I spent a lot of time admiring the indigo stained edges of the pages and the small illustrations with myriad black lines on the cover. The mysterious title and the beautiful cover makes this one an eye catching book. Very happy to add this one to my book collection for it has an absolutely gorgeous cover in addition to a brilliant narrative. This was a Christmas gift from two dear friends from college, Elna and Ullas. Em and the Big Hoom is the story of Em noted down by her son through fragments of her memories.It talks of the trauma of growing up in a household with a mother who has bipolar disorder and how the narrator comes to terms with it.
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