The book tells a story that is funny,
sad and poignant. Imelda is the mentally challenged wife of Augusti. To their son and daughter, their mother has always been 'Em' and their father 'The
Big Hoom'. Their's is a childhood hazy with
the smoke of their mother's beedi and haunted with frequent visits to
the hospital as Em repeatedly tries to kill herself.
But Em wasn't always like this. She was
a beautiful teenager head-over-heels in love with the handsome
Augustine. Their's was an old-world romance full of charm. On one
hand runs the story of the courtship of Em and the Big Hoom, on the
other hand is the present-day Em—funny, whimsical, brutal. She has her
entertaining highs and depressing lows, and there is The Big Hoom—steadfast,
loyal and supportive.
The beauty of the story lies in the way
the author reveals the emotional ties of love, loss, guilt, helplessness,
pain and the myriad shades of other emotions that the members of the
family share.
It is also a very subtle and sensitive
approach to a subject like mental illness. Even today largely people
like Em are not considered 'ill', they are just 'mad'.
A special mention must be made of the
way the book looks. The design is spectacular and owning the book is
a great pleasure. This is a must-read.
