Helpful Score: 4
From my blog:
I don't know how she continues to do it, time and time again. Picoult just has a knack for creating characters that you love (and hate!) and storylines that are chock full of so much depth and emotion that you can't stop reading until you know what the outcome is. Sing You Home will probably be one of the most controversial books she's ever written. There are so many questions that she explores in this book (from her website):
* What does it mean to be gay in today's world?
* How reproductive science has outstripped the legal system
* Are embryos people or property?
* What challenges do same-sex couples face when it comes to marriage and adoption?
* What happens when religion and sexual orientation - two issues that are supposed to be justice-blind - enter the courtroom?
* What constitutes a "traditional family" in this day and age?
I'm sure just reading through those thought-provoking questions, you had a knee-jerk, strong response to one or more of them. I think we all do. And that's the point of this book. To explore those questions. Picoult isn't afraid to tackle the tough social issues. But she does it in a way that is honest, really capturing the essence of each side of the argument. Of course, she throws in a couple of characters that you loathe - the stereotypical "crazy" religious lawyer and the pastor with his own agenda who is pushing Max to do some things he is not entirely comfortable with. But, with those characters aside, I think Picoult did an excellent job capturing both sides and laying out the story the way she did.
The story is told from 3 perspectives - Zoe, Max, and Vanessa. At the beginning of each section, the reader is told who will be narrating and the font-type is different for each character, which is a fantastic idea! Each character is developed extremely well. Picoult is able to capture the essence of each character, with appropriate backstory and supplemental characters, to really give the reader a true picture of who Zoe, Max and Vanessa really are.
The narrative flowed like a movie in my mind. Hollywood - are you reading this? I could seriously picture this movie on the big screen. Picoult takes the reader step by step through each phase of the book. There are no odd time shifts or parts of the narrative that seemed out of line to me. The only thing that I took issue with is how quickly Zoe and Vanessa's relationship developed. I'm not sure, after being with Max for nine years, that someone could realistically work through all of that and fall in love with another person that quickly.
In case you couldn't tell, I thought this book was amazing. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good story, with lots of controversy! No matter which side of the issue you fall on, this book will give you something to talk about.
Conclusion:
This is a moving, heartfelt, emotionally-packed novel that will keep you riveted until its stunning conclusion!
I don't know how she continues to do it, time and time again. Picoult just has a knack for creating characters that you love (and hate!) and storylines that are chock full of so much depth and emotion that you can't stop reading until you know what the outcome is. Sing You Home will probably be one of the most controversial books she's ever written. There are so many questions that she explores in this book (from her website):
* What does it mean to be gay in today's world?
* How reproductive science has outstripped the legal system
* Are embryos people or property?
* What challenges do same-sex couples face when it comes to marriage and adoption?
* What happens when religion and sexual orientation - two issues that are supposed to be justice-blind - enter the courtroom?
* What constitutes a "traditional family" in this day and age?
I'm sure just reading through those thought-provoking questions, you had a knee-jerk, strong response to one or more of them. I think we all do. And that's the point of this book. To explore those questions. Picoult isn't afraid to tackle the tough social issues. But she does it in a way that is honest, really capturing the essence of each side of the argument. Of course, she throws in a couple of characters that you loathe - the stereotypical "crazy" religious lawyer and the pastor with his own agenda who is pushing Max to do some things he is not entirely comfortable with. But, with those characters aside, I think Picoult did an excellent job capturing both sides and laying out the story the way she did.
The story is told from 3 perspectives - Zoe, Max, and Vanessa. At the beginning of each section, the reader is told who will be narrating and the font-type is different for each character, which is a fantastic idea! Each character is developed extremely well. Picoult is able to capture the essence of each character, with appropriate backstory and supplemental characters, to really give the reader a true picture of who Zoe, Max and Vanessa really are.
The narrative flowed like a movie in my mind. Hollywood - are you reading this? I could seriously picture this movie on the big screen. Picoult takes the reader step by step through each phase of the book. There are no odd time shifts or parts of the narrative that seemed out of line to me. The only thing that I took issue with is how quickly Zoe and Vanessa's relationship developed. I'm not sure, after being with Max for nine years, that someone could realistically work through all of that and fall in love with another person that quickly.
In case you couldn't tell, I thought this book was amazing. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good story, with lots of controversy! No matter which side of the issue you fall on, this book will give you something to talk about.
Conclusion:
This is a moving, heartfelt, emotionally-packed novel that will keep you riveted until its stunning conclusion!
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