Jodi Picoult - My Sister's Keeper

It's a parent's worst nightmare: their two year old daughter being diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia, and no one in the family being a bone-marrow match. They can go on the 'list', for an unknown donor, but, the odds of finding the perfect match are scarce. So, they have another baby. Nope, not to 'replace' their ill daughter, but to save her. The new baby, a 'designer' baby, has been created to be a perfect match for her sister...

And now, at the age of thirteen, Anna wants out, and she's suing her parents for medical emancipation. Kate, her sister is sixteen, and while she had been in remission, the cancer came back. Her entire life, Anna has been saving Kate's life - blood transfusions, bone marrow transplants, etc. And now, Kate's kidneys are giving up, and Anna is expected to be the donor.

However, Anna has a different idea, and finds a lawyer, and takes her family to court over the rights to her own body. While one can't blame her for this decision - every activity of her life is dependent on her sister; be it camp, or be it a friend's birthday party - one does wonder what finally triggers this decision. Is she ready for a life independent of her sister? Or, has she finally been pushed too far? Is it because she's always been invisible to her parents, but for Kate? Or, is it because she was created for a 'purpose', and never really had the 'childhood' most kids do? Or, is it something completely different?

This unbearably sad, emotional and heart-breaking story follows Anna's battle against her parents, and the family's battle to stick together, while everything seems to be coming apart at the seems. There's Jesse, the brother who is a juvenile delinquent; there's Brian, the father, an amateur astronomer and a full time fireman, and there's Sara, the mother, the ex-lawyer, the obsessive protector of Kate.

The book explores the points of view of every member of the family, with each chapter being narrated by one member. Campbell, Anna's lawyer, and Julia, Anna's guardian ad litem have their fair share of narrations as well, and this brings the whole book together incredibly. We aren't restricted to the views of just one actor, and as readers, we are allowed to sympathize and empathize with all of them. Your heart goes out to thirteen year old Anna, who's confused, and while one would assume selfish, can you really blame her? You can almost feel Sara's anger towards Anna on hearing her decision, as she's motivated by keeping Kate alive. And then there's Brian - the sensible objective parent, who's more rational and sticks by Anna. Of course there's Jesse, and you can't help but feel sorry for him.... he couldn't be the perfect match for his sister! The characters grow and evolve through this book, and you can see how each decision and action tears them apart, while simultaneously, bringing them together.

The book delivers this punch at the end, which you just don't see coming, and that's what hits the hardest. Life has this weird way of balancing out, and sometimes, it's not a fair or fine balance.

It's a contemporary book, exploring arguments and controversies that persist in the medical world today: from 'designer babies' to 'stem cell research'. It's fascinating, as you wonder, do parents really always know what's best for their children? Is Sara acting on what's best for Anna, or what's best for Kate? And it boggles your mind, to see a thirteen year old girl being adult enough to stand up for something she wants, despite ambivalence being rampant in her heart and mind. No one can doubt, for even an instant, that the two sisters don't love each other a lot.

Rating: 5

Alice Sebold - The Lovely Bones

This is Sebold’s debut novel, and while there’s lots of loopholes in the story, the premise in itself is interesting.

A 14 year old girl is raped and killed by a neighbor on her way home from school, one evening. In the story, the girl, Susie Salmon (the book does start: My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie), observes her family and her friends in the aftermath of her disappearance, from heaven, as they struggle to come to terms with it, and deal with it in a variety of ways. I say, ‘her disappearance’ as her body is not found, all the cops find is an elbow, which they identify as hers.

While the family falls apart; with the mother leaning on the cops for support, and eventually running away to California; the father correctly suspecting one of the neighbors and being hell-bent on proving his guilt; the sister swinging between missing her older sister and dealing with people staring at her and only noticing her dead sister; and her younger brother not knowing why his sister isn’t coming home. A very unlikely person takes on the role of trying to bring the family together...

The story touches on many interesting ideas, like how the dead watch their near and dear ones and want to be close to them, as much as possible; as well as, how their near and dear ones can actually sense them at times. It addresses ‘the cold chill’ that people feel when someone dies, and the soul touches them on its way to heaven, and how they’re perpetually haunted by them (imagine being a doctor in the ICU!). There are also traces of wistfulness in Susie’s narration, as she sees her friends and sister growing up, going to college, having their first love and everything else which she’ll never be able to do. Some of the detail and emotions present in the book (specially in the first chapter, when the rape and subsequent murder actually happens and the family reports her missing and later on, when her father remembers her) is well carved out (excuse the crass pun), and beautifully written. It does remind us that the author herself was a victim of sexual assault during her college days.

However, like I said, the premise is interesting, but... the book doesn’t work like a mystery story with people being intent on finding the guilty party (it only seems important to the father and sister). Then you have the whole chapter where Susie occupies her friend’s body, to kiss her crush, which, in my opinion, is pushing it. It’s not supposed to be the X-Files after all. And of course the whole idea of an ever-expanding heaven just seems like overkill.

It’s a book with potential, probably well-written for a first novel. Overall, a 6 on 10?