I finished the latest Jodi Picoult quite a few days ago but I didn't have internet for unknown reasons and so I am just now posting my review. Right now I will post this book review and then later there will be a movie review about upcoming movies. On to the book review part of the review now.
As I said in my previous post I love almost all of Jodi Picoult's novels. A couple have fallen a little short for me but this one intrigued me from the start. It is titled "Sing You Home," all about Zoe, a music therapist married to Max, a recovering alcholic landscaper, and their wish to have a child. It has been difficult for them due to both of their infertilities. The story begins when Zoe is twenty-eight weeks into an IVF pregnancy. Far enough along that she is actually hopeful that this will end in a baby and not a miscarriage like her first two. She is huge and healthy and happy. Her mom has a baby shower all planned out, gifts and games, and cake is waiting. Half way through the shower Zoe begins to hemorrhage and is rushed to the hospital. Where she delivers a stillborn son.
While at the hospital she discovers that she has a severe blood clotting disorder that could cause serious and permanent damage if she were to get pregnant again. Which is something she is determined to do. However after she gets out of the hospital and Max and her spread the ashes of the son they never knew Max tells her he can no longer go through the uncertainty of trying to have a baby. The pain and the money that goes into it. And so he asks for a divorce. After this Max falls off the wagon big time and almost dies in a car crash. It is this that points Max in the direction of his brother's church and pastor. The Eternal Glory Church with Pastor Clive Lincoln. An extremist church that claims to follow the Bible to it's fullest meaning. Especially the passages that condem homosexuality.
Around this time Zoe runs into Vanessa Shaw. A counselor at the local high school with whom she has worked in her musical therapist capacity. They begin spending time together. Working through Zoe's depression over her dead baby, and her clotting condition, and most recently the knowledge that she has cancer, and has to have a hysterectomy. They do little things together, going shopping, running errands and going to the movies. On one of their movie trips they run into Max and his new church buddies protesting a movie entitled "Juliet & Juliet." This is Zoe's first glimpse at Max's new life. Knowing that Vanessa is gay Zoe gets them out of the situation before it can escalte into anything.
Eventaully after spending all their time together Vanessa and Zoe find themselves in love. A situation that both surprises and delights Zoe. In short order they move in together and get married. Eventually they decide that they want a baby. Now that Zoe no longer has a uterus, Vanessa decides to carry one of Zoe's embryos so that it is a part of both of them. Zoe and Max have three more embryos frozen at the fertility clinic from their last round of IVF. Zoe goes to Max asking for permission to use them. However with Max's new beliefs and the new crowd he runs in, he denys her the use of them and instead wishes to take them so that he can give them to his brother and sister-in-law. And so begins the court case.
It is a battle of church and state. Questions such as "who will provide the best home life for the child?" "Is this a matter of the law being carried out or simply the church trying to push it's own agenda?" Each side believes they know what is best for the "pre-born children" as they are reffered to. Each side tries to trap the other into tripping up. Making a big enough mistake that the judge will rule for their side. It is a tough read at times.
The book was really well written and very well researched. Jodi Picoult nevers leaves a fact unreasearched, which should show just how dedicated she is to getting things right. And the poetry of her writing is absolutely beautiful. Because this story had so much to do with music and it's healing properties Jodi Picoult and her friend Ellen Wilber put together a companion soundtrack. Jodi wrote the lyrics and Ellen wrote the music and sang the songs. I think that it was a nice idea to have. The lyrics and music were beautiful although didn't really seem to go along with the chapters each track was selected for, but they should have hired a professional singer. Ellen just didn't have the range needed in order to make these songs beautiful. I was a little disappointed in that. I love to read and listen to music. And a lot of times I enjoy trying to find music to go along with the mood of the book and so I was excited that this book came with music already picked out. But I was disappointed in the outcome. I ended up using my own mix to go with it, using a lot of the artists that are mentioned in the book.
Despite the poor quality of the CD the book is a great read. It is a tough story to read, especially if you are thinking about having a baby or know what it's like to go through having a baby, but for me this makes it even better. The rawness, and the pain that come through make the story darkly beautiful in the way only Jodi can do. The story is told through the eyes of Zoe, Max and Vanessa. And so we get different perspectives on each person's life and how they see what is going on around them. We feel the power of music every time Zoe brings it up, and we feel the pain of everything she goes through. We understand Max's inability to cope and his need to keep drinking after every promise not to, and we feel his heart being torn in two during the trial. We watch Vanessa fall head over heels in love with Zoe and promise hersef that she will make sure that Zoe is always happy. It's a great way to storytell. I love it.
If you are at all a fan of Jodi's go out and get "Sing You Home." It's worth the money. And if you are looking to dive into a new author this may very well be a good first for Jodi Picoult. I recommend this novel highly and I can't wait to see what else Jodi has in store.
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