"Even When She Forgot My Name" (book review)

...by Wong Chai Kee, 2009 (Epigram).

This is the story of Wong Chai Kee's mother and her battle with Alzheimer's.
Alzheimer's, more so than cancer, is one of those diseases that challenges us in the psychological and spiritual realm, more than in the physical.

Wong's account is by turns humorous, witty, poignant, despairing - all the things one goes through when losing a loved one, and remembering sweet times before ill health invaded.
It is a credit to his writing style that the narrative never becomes bogged down in pathos or gloom - a credit to the strength of character of his mother also.

"Ma", as she was called, appears to have been a strong, resilient and feisty woman with a cutting sense of humour - by the end of the book we feel we have been introduced to her as a family friend, and are rooting for her as she is ravaged first by the Alzheimer's and finally by oesophagal cancer.
We also share in the sights, sounds and smells of earlier Singapore and even earlier mainland China.

I love the style in the book - the narrator never gets in the way of his story, and emotions and scenarios are deftly outlined, never pausing to dwell on sentiment.
The book sparkles and crackles, inspiring and uplifting.
Although never discussed in its pages, one becomes aware of the huge amount of time and energy Ma's children, and in particular the author, spent with her towards the end of her life.
Strongly recommended.
9/10.