In the spirit of Alison Bechdelâs Fun Home and Roz Chastâs Canât We Talk About Something More Pleasant?, Margaret Kimballâs AND NOW I SPILL THE FAMILY SECRETS begins in the aftermath of a tragedy.
In 1988, when Kimball is only four years old, her mother attempts suicide on Motherâs Dayâand this becomes one of many things Kimballâs family never speaks about. As she searches for answers nearly thirty years later, Kimball embarks on a thrilling journey into the secrets her family has kept for decades.
Using old diary entries, hospital records, home videos, and other archives, Margaret pieces together a narrative map of her childhoodâher motherâs bipolar disorder, her grandmotherâs institutionalization, and her brotherâs increasing strugglesâin an attempt to understand what no one likes to talk about: the fractures in her family.
Both a coming-of-age story about family dysfunction and a reflection on mental health, AND NOW I SPILL THE FAMILY SECRETS is funny, poignant, and deeply inspiring in its portrayal of what drives a family apart and what keeps them together.