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Helium (2013)

by Jaspreet Singh(Favorite Author)

3.07 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

1608199568 (ISBN13: 9781608199563)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Bloomsbury USA

review 1: Helium has an interesting narrative. The author speaks, taking you into the past, present & his inner thoughts. The book is written lyrically & as you process the novel, you begin to be drawn into the personal trauma the protagonist has gone through in light of the 1984 aftermath of Indra Gandhi's death. It might have been just 3 days but the story reveals the categorical lynching of the physical, emotional & psychological spirit of Sikh people & those who loved them. The book makes you empathize with the characters as they deal with their grief & loss in different ways & how their lives have stood still even through the passage of time.The author doesn't hide his contempt for Indira & her son. The book provides some clarity on the Bhopal poisoning & the years of the Emerg... moreency. Read the book to learn these insights. You will probably be haunted by the authors words & realise how such trauma needs to be acknowledged & addressed with sensitivity no matter how long it takes. The title is particularly profound. As you read, you learn the Helium is really that metaphor for addressing what is not ignoring that which is invisible. You will emerge from this read with greater empathy for your fellow man.
review 2: A must-read book in the style of Primo Levi and W.G. Sebald but with a voice and subject matter entirely its own. The content is harrowing, as is the agony of the narrator who must come to grips with the fact of his own father having been a prime mover in the Sikh massacres in Delhi in 1984, but many passages are lyrical and fascinating. Anyone who cares about human rights and issues of memory, as well as any admirer of Sebald, should read this. less

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