Summary

The Book of Mother is a fact-based novel. It is narrated by the author, Violaine Huisman. Violaine is the daughter of the novel’s protagonist, Catherine. In Part I, Violaine begins the novel by recalling events from the late 1980s. Violaine was ten years old, and the Cold War had just ended. At around the same time, Catherine was diagnosed with manic depression. One day, Catherine was driving her car with her two daughters—Violaine and Elsa—in the car. Catherine was often a reckless driver, and that day, she accidentally crashed the car. No one in the car was seriously injured, but Catherine was hospitalized for physical injuries before being sent to a psychiatric hospital. Violaine and Elsa were sent to live with their father, Antoine. Catherine and Antoine were divorced by that point. Catherine was eventually released from the hospital, whereupon she...