Review of The Sound of SCH
Christmas Staff Picks: The Sound of SCH by Danielle Lim
recommended by Chan Wai Han
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The Sound of SCH is the true story of a journey with mental illness, beautifully told by the author from a time when she grew up witnessing her uncle’s untold struggle with a crippling mental and social disease, and her mother’s difficult role as caregiver.
Unflinching in its raw and honest portrayal of living with schizophrenia, it is a moving account of human resiliency and sacrifice in the face of brokenness. Danielle’s writing spoke to me especially, as I have been a bipolar patient for 40 years, going through the highs and lows of that mental condition with my family lovingly by my side. I have also walked the path of the caregiver to people with various types of mental illness. As an advocate for openness and greater resources for helping mentally ill patients, this book can only add to others’ understanding and concern for this oft-hidden need.
Wai Han, a Jane-of-all-trades, loves to inflict listeners with Cantonese opera tunes. She is a happy grandma to two little ones, but has no hope of passing on to them her interest in writing Cantonese classical poems.