Tag Archive | Jodi Picoult

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult & Jennifer Finney Boylan

Aug12

Be Yourself

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult  & Jennifer Finney Boylan is a powerful contemporary novel that consumed me from the start.

I have always loved Jodi Picoult’s novels and Mad Honey is no exception.

The plotline surrounds a young man, Asher, who is accused of murdering his girlfriend, Lily. The reader follows the trial through the eyes of Asher’s mother after the event; and we hear Lily’s voice leading up to the event. Two women who love Asher. The reader wants to believe that Asher is innocent – but even his mum has doubts.

A major theme is that of being true to yourself. “You’re the only one who gets to decide who you’re going to be. You don’t have to be just like your father.” We must not let anyone mould us into being someone we are not.

It is heartbreaking to see a character suffering at the hands of the bullies. Even their own father bullies his offspring. There is a heartbreaking scene that leaves a youngster powerless.

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By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult

Aug4

There Was Once A Girl

By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult is a marvellous dual timeline novel that I really enjoyed. It has its’ roots in fact and will educate you as you read.

There are actual historical figures including Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare. The leading lady in the sixteenth century is Emilia Bassano who we know actually existed. Jodi Picoult’s notes at the end of the book are fascinating. Emilia Bassano is the focus of the novel and has links to present day author Melina who is researching her as she is her ancestor.

There are many parallels between the two women as they are both seeking to write, and both are marginalised in favour of men.

Jodi Picoult has created a fascinating tale around the subject of invisible women. “There was a girl who became invisible so that her words might not be.” Women, it seemed, were invisible in all sorts of walks of life. As they aged, they were passed by.

Writing about Alice Arden who murdered her husband Thomas, Emilia Bassano says: “For a woman to have status, she must be married. Yet a married woman loses everything – her name, her body, her property, her money. It all belongs to her husband. A widow… is given back all that rightfully belongs to her… It is a wonder there aren’t more husbands murdered.” It is very sad to see women “sidelined because of gender.”

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Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

Jan11

Wow – So Powerful

Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult is a powerful contemporary novel opening in March 2020 and moving forwards as the world dealt with the COVID pandemic.

Jodi Picoult focuses in on a couple, who are a microcosm for the experiences of many. Living in New York City, a doctor finds all of his leave cancelled as he faces the COVID outbreak in the hospital. We witness his life of PPE, hard work, impossible situations and sadness.

In contrast we see his partner, an art expert, trapped in the beauty and tranquility of the Galapagos Islands. But paradise can soon become a prison when you are trapped there with no flights in or out. “When you’re stuck in heaven, it can feel like hell.” We see the kindness and compassion of a local community.

The hospital is in contrast to the islands. Here it is hell on earth as bodies pile up and COVID takes hold. The experiences traumatise both staff and the patients who do recover. Survivors search for answers, trying to make sense of experiences that cannot be explained.

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A Spark Of Light by Jodi Picoult

Aug2

I’ll Always Carry You

A Spark Of Light by Jodi Picoult is a contemporary novel set in a women’s clinic. It concerns the themes of pro-life and pro-choice. I found it a difficult read because the unborn babies have no choice, they are at the mercy of their mother’s choices.

I think Jodi Picoult is an excellent author and I always enjoy her books with their twists that I never spot coming! A Spark Of Light was excellently written but it was a hard read for me.

The plotline is brilliantly constructed as the novel opens and then works backwards in time so we can see what caused the characters to make the decisions they made. The story does come full circle with the epilogue at the end.

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