Posted: Fri Mar 14, 2008 10:45 pm Post subject: Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult
June's first husband was killed in a car crash. Against all the odds, her daughter was uninjured -- and, in another miracle, June found love again with the policeman who rescued them. Six years on they are a happy family, June pregnant with their own child. But now June's second daughter is dying without the new heart she so urgently needs. And her first daughter, along with her husband, is dead, killed by Shay Bourne, an itinerant workman they welcomed into their home. The crime was so heinous that Shay has been given the death penalty -- for the first time in 69 years in New Hampshire. Shay is going to die, and he is looking for redemption. He wants to give June's daughter his heart ...
I finished this tonight, it's been a roller-coaster of an emotional read. There were times when I felt bogged down by it, and times when I felt uplifted by it.
Shay Bourne the death row inmate is portrayed as almost angel like at times, his only wish before he dies is to donate his heart to the sister of his victim.
But to be killed by lethal injection would make his heart useless for transplant. Here is where Jodi seems to pay tribute to Stephen King in that I really could not stop thinking that I had somehow wandered into 'The Green Mile' by mistake.
Shay Bourne apparantly performs miracles, the press cotton on and people start camping outside the prison. Is Shay the new Messiah? Can the mother of the girl bring herself to accept the heart of the man who killed her daughter, or will she let her remaining daughter die?
As in most of Jodi's books, the chapters are brief and are narrated by different characters involved in the story - except for Shay Bourne - whose own voice and feelings are never really known.
The novel tackles, again, as usual for Jodi several moral dilemmas. There is the court room scenes, a touch of romance and another of her trademarks, the twist at the end, although I have to be honest and say that I guessed one of the twists, but the ending is left extremely open. Jodi likes her readers to make up their own minds as to what really happened.
There must have been an incredible amount of religious research done whilst writing the book. You dont have to be religious or have any particular beliefs to enjoy the story, but if you do wonder why people believe what they do and how their beliefs affect their lives you will be fascinated by some of the points made. I did think that some of the religious references got a bit heavy in the middle of the book - but were necessary for the story.
There are some parts of the story that I think Jodi has just made fit, without thinking it through - how could a grown man donate his heart to a teenage girl - but I may be wrong, maybe that is possible? The spiritual advisor / priest is another great coincidence - but lets face it, this is a work of fiction.
I do wonder where the character of Maggie came from, I didnt recognise her as a typical Jodi Picoult character, she seemed more in keeping with a chick lit novel, although I did actually like the character, which is more than I can say about the bereaved mother who I felt no empathy towards at all.
All in all, I enjoyed this book. I found the storyline fascinating, if a little unbelieveable - not her best book by far, on a par with The Pact and Salems Falls and better than Vanishing Acts.
_________________ Currently reading: The Tent The Bucket and Me by Emma Kennedy and Granny The Pag by Nina Bawden
1001 Challenge Books read in 2009 - 3
1001 Challenge Books read in 2008 - 8
1001 Challenge Books read in 2007 - 13
Can't wait to read this, didn't realise it was out so soon. _________________ Swap List: http://tinyurl.com/33pg6r
Currently Reading "Switchcraft" by Lowri Turner
charlottestar Busy babbling when should be reading
Joined: 08 May 2007 Posts: 404 Birthday: 27th February
Location: Oxfordshire
Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 10:40 pm Post subject:
I read this and although I liked it as a typical JP read I think I must be getting a bit fed-up with her books. I feel like she concocts these ethical dilemmas and then she seems (in my opinion) to take the easy way out.
I don't want to give away storylines and stuff so I'll spoiler....
Spoiler:
The ethical dilemma she puts up here is that a murderer wants to donate his heart to the sister of a child he's killed and it's all about the mother's choice but I kind of felt that JP went on to bypass the whole dilemma by making Shay Bourne (the murderer) innocent and bringing up all these other twists etc. By doing that she failed to address the problem. I feel she does this in a lot of her novels.
In My Sister's Keeper she did it when Anna is killed at the end rather conveniently so her heart (?) can save her sister then the whole problem of Anna sueing her parents can be safely tidied away without really being resolved.
I kind of feel she gets up close to the issue and circles it a lot and then backs off. I find it frustrating.
cor that was a rant and a half!! I'm sorry about that. I've been thinking about it for a while. Am I the only one who feels this???
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