by Shelby Cochran
Tripping Past Om voices the unstated but felt consciousness of a generation who wanted to explore the human psyche. Some experimented with psychedelic drugs, finding the mind both a gutter and a glittering possibility. A blossom of the Flower Child movement, the novel reveals the Hippie Movement in a captivating piece of literature. The descriptions of the trips are unique, but perhaps illuminating some common elements of the time and situation.
Jemma, engulfed in self-loathing from a failed romance and boredom from caring for an autistic brother, plunges herself into a dangerous relationship with a head, a proselytizer of LSD. He soon controls her through the drug and her own false perceptions. She emerges into a life of drugs, sex, and violence. The escapades she experiences, both literally and symbolically, roller coast Jemma into self-awareness. She finds that Om (blessedness) is neither out nor in but who and what she is.
Jemma, engulfed in self-loathing from a failed romance and boredom from caring for an autistic brother, plunges herself into a dangerous relationship with a head, a proselytizer of LSD. He soon controls her through the drug and her own false perceptions. She emerges into a life of drugs, sex, and violence. The escapades she experiences, both literally and symbolically, roller coast Jemma into self-awareness. She finds that Om (blessedness) is neither out nor in but who and what she is.
