Publishers Weekly Starred Review A spellbinding suspense novel. Awards and Honors. Resources and Downloads. More books from this author: Jodi Picoult. See more by Jodi Picoult. You may also like: Thriller and Mystery Staff Picks. Thank you for signing up, fellow book lover! See More Categories. Your First Name. Zip Code. And those were just in the past year. The secretary blinks at me. I practically fall out of my chair and that puts me eye— to— eye with an incoming German shepherd, which spears me with a look and then marches over to the mug and starts to drink the water inside.
Campbell Alexander comes in too. He shrugs out of a suit jacket and hangs it neatly on the back of the door, then yanks a file out of a cabinet before moving to his desk.
He never makes eye contact with me, but he starts talking all the same. He glances at me curiously, then pushes a button on his phone.
I take a step forward; so does the dog. Bernard that might carry rum up a snowy mountain. I automatically reach out to pet him. The minute I say it, I want to take it back. A muscle tics in his cheek, and then he picks up the article lying on top. However, it makes a much better headline to say that a nine— year— old is suing God for being stuck with the short end of the straw in life.
A rainbow might as well have cracked down the middle of that big mahogany desk. The fact that the only reason I was born was as a harvest crop for Kate. Toggle navigation. Read an excerpt. Book club questions ». Your novels are incredibly relevant because they deal with topics that are a part of the national dialogue.
Why did you choose this subject for My Sister's Keeper? Did writing this novel change any of your views in this area? In Jesse, you've done an amazing job of bringing the voice of the "angry young man" alive with irreverent originality. Your ability to transcend gender lines in your writing is seemingly effortless. Is this actually the case, or is writing from a male perspective a difficult thing for you to do? On page , Jesse observes, while reminiscing on his planned attempt to dig to China, that, "Darkness, you know, is relative.
How did you choose which quotes would go at the beginning of each section? Milton, Shakespeare, D. Lawrence -- are these some of your favorite authors, or did you have other reasons for choosing them? Sisterhood, and siblinghood for that matter, is a central concept in this work.
Why did you make Isobel and Julia twins? Does this plot point somehow correspond with the co-dependence between Kate and Anna? What did you hope to reveal about sisterhood through this story? Anyone who has watched a loved one die and anyone with a heart in their chest would be moved by the heartfelt, realistic and moving depiction of sickness and death that is presented in this story. Was it difficult to imagine that scenario? How did you generate the realistic details? Sara is a complicated character, and readers will probably both criticize and empathize with her.
How do you see her role in the story? The point of view of young people is integral in your novels. In fact, more wisdom, humor and compassion often comes from them than anywhere else. What do you think adults could stand to learn from children? What is it about children that allows them to get to the truth of things so easily?
The ending of My Sister's Keeper is surprising and terribly sad. Without giving too much away, can you share why you choose to end the novel this way? Was it your plan from the beginning, or did this develop later on, as you were writing? All of your books to date have garnered wonderful press.
In what ways, if any, does this change your writing experience? Book club discussion questions for My Sister's Keeper. Reread the prologue to My Sister's Keeper. Who is the speaker? Is it the same person you thought it was the first time you read it? What is the metaphorical relevance of Brian's profession as a fire chief? Why is Jesse's behavior so aberrant, while until now, Anna has been so compliant?
What might be a possible reason for Brian's fascination with astronomy? On page 98, Kate is being admitted to the hospital in very serious condition. She mouths to Jesse, "tell Anna," but is unable to finish. What do you think she was trying to say? On page , Julia says, "Even if the law says that no one is responsible for anyone else, helping someone who needs it is the right thing to do.
Did Anna do the right thing, honoring Kate's wishes? It's Jodi Picoult. My mom loves her, my sister loves her, everyone I know loves her and I can't stand her.
She just writes in this odd way that gets on my nerves. She made not so subtle comparisons to the stars and the lonely people on earth, to a fire and a disease, a firefighter and a mother who wants to save her dying daughter.
I couldn't take it. But I know it's just me and that other people are going to love this story. I thought I knew how it was going to end but when it ended differently that I expected, my thought was "Oh yeah, I should have figured that one out.
Much sappier than my prediction. I have the same feelings toward Alice Hoffman and Anita Shreve. I once found an Anita Shreve book in the basement of the house I moved into, crammed under the oil tank. Never one to pass up a book, I gave it a read, got two chapters in and wanted to throw it back under the oil tank myself. I think these authors try too hard and that's what irritates me. But don't let me stop you. Just don't say I didn't warn you. This book was stunning. In writing, in style, in plot, in character!
It truly is one of those books that you really can't stop reading. Especially for me, because in a way it took me back to my Lurlene McDaniel days.
Did anyone ever read her? She was always writing books about different teenagers and young children with terminal illnesses. I was addicted to those books. So it was no surprise when the young reader in me sort of jumped up when I saw a friend of mine reading this book and she described it to me. Boy was it a book well chosen. Picoult writes from the views of a few different key characters, allowing the reader to get an extremely well-rounded look at the story.
At first the jumping from character to character is a little jarring and you have to keep reminding yourself that it's a new character, but eventually you get into the vibe of the book and wouldn't have it written any other way.
The one thing Picoult does perfectly is make you torn. You really don't know who to support in a case like this. At times you find yourself leaning towards Anna, and other times wanting desperately to shout your support for Sara, the poor mother in this situation. With the readers information of other characters points of views and knowledge, the whole case is a lot more difficult to have a desired verdict towards.
In the end a decision is made, a decision that, while reading the book, I was constantly wondering what Picoult was going to do, because either way one fully supported side was going to lose. But the way she really ends the book puts results to rest in a solid, yet emotionally unsatisfying ending. The ending it by no means bad, quite the contrary it was beautiful and settling, but at the same time you don't know whether to be relieved that there was an extremely closed ending without debate, or to cry.
I won't tell you why, and I may have said too much already. But this book is just incredible and I highly advise you try to read it as soon as possible. Anyone who has a kid has probably, at one point or another, battled with them at bedtime. That's what I do, every night. There is much yelling, crying, begging and pleading. It's horrible. Kid 3 is out like a light, so she's not part of the problem. Kid 2 puts up a good fight, whining and tantrum throwing, but eventually she succumbs to her sleepiness.
Kid 1, however At night, she's afraid of everything and feels that if she sleeps something will get her. But she's not invincible, she has to sleep sometime. So after being assured that she's safe, she'll lay down and relax--this can only happen in the master bedroom, because in her mind the master bedroom is safe from everything.
Once she's been lulled into blissful unconsciousness either me or my husband will move her to her room. Typically this goes off without a hitch. But every once in a great while she wakes up and totally freaks out, because she realizes she was tricked. By her own parents, no less. She feels betrayed. She doesn't believe us when we swear that we won't move her again because we will and she knows it. And so, because of her her general mistrust, her fear of everything, not to mention all the sobbing, she is awake for another couple of hours, at least.
The whole situation is very dramatic and it totally sucks. How does this relate to My Sister's Keeper? It doesn't--not exactly but I do have a point. Let me explain. I spent years avoiding Jody Picoult's books like the plague.
They frightened me. Two of those most controversial are The Pact and Vanishing Acts. She wrote her first story at the age of five and moved to New Hampshire at age thirteen, the setting of many of her later written novels. Over the course of her career, Picoult has written almost 24 novels and many were turned into films.
Today, Jodi Picoult remains an esteemed and lauded author. Skip to content.
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