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Top 7 Jodi Picoult reads

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Photo credit: Gasper Tingale
House Rules
The latest offering from Jodi Picoult tells the story of Jacob Hunt, a young teen who is highly organized, brilliant at maths, but suffers from Asperger's Syndrome.  He is unable to express himself or unable to engage on a social level with others. Like many kids with AS, he does however, have a specific subject that keeps his interest and in his case, his interest lies in forensic analysis.

Always showing up at crime scenes and giving police advice on what they need to do and procedure they need to follow, he usually ends up being correct. But things are about to take a horrible turn when Jacob's tutor is found dead and the police start questioning him.

Considering all the common behaviours usually associated with Asperger's Syndrome - avoiding eye-contact, nervous tics , twitches and reacting inappropriately to the death of his tutor, it's only a matter of time before the police pen him as a suspect and Jacob suddenly finds himself accused of murder.

The question remains: Is a victim of circumstance or is he in actual fact guilty?

House Rules takes a look at how autism affects a family and how the legal system works for people who are able to function and communicate in a certain way and how it doesn't cater for those who don't.

Read an excerpt here.

Buy your copy here.

Handle with Care
When Willow is born with severe osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease), Charlotte and Seaon O'Keefe are devastated. Not only will this mean that the family will be struggling to make ends meet to cover their daughter's medical expenses, but  little Willow will suffer and experience tremendous pain because of constantly breaking bones.

Still, Charlotte thinks she has the answer. 

If she and her husband file a wrongful birth lawsuit against her obstetrician for not telling her in advance that her child would be born with such a severe disability, the payout just might ensure a lifetime's worth of care for Willow.

But doing so would also mean that Charlotte has to publically proclaim that she would have terminated the pregnancy if she'd known about the disability in advance.  And to add to that, her obstetrician, isn't just anyone - it's her best friend.

Handle with Care not only explores the issues around medical ethics and personal morals, but heavily touches on the question of just how far you would go to care for someone you love, even if it's at the expense of someone else.

Buy your copy here.

Mercy
When local police chief Cameron MacDonald's cousin arrives at the police station with his wife's body along with a confession that he killed her, his life quickly spirals out of control. As the police chief of a small Massachusetts town, he has spent most of his life guided by duty and honour. Bound to the town's residents, he instantly places Jamie under arrest.

For Cam's wife Allie, things are not so clear cut.

Though she loves him, she can't help but side against Cam, believing Jamie's act to be an act of a man so in love with his wife, he'd grant her all her wishes, even if it meant killing her.

The arrival of Mia, who happens to be Allie's assistant at the floral shop where she works, only serves to complicate matters and soon Cam finds himself betraying his own wife, even while he is assists the prosecution in preparing for the case against Jamie.

What would you do for someone you love? Would you lie? Would you leave? Would you kill? These are just some of the questions that Mercy explores.

Buy your copy here.

My Sister's Keeper
13-year old Anna has undergone numerous surgeries, transfusions and medical tests in order to help her older sister Kate fight the leukaemia that has plagued her since childhood.

As the product of a pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was specifically conceived in order to be a bone marrow match for Kate.

Usually always willing to assist her older sister, Kate never questions her role until she is told that she will need to donate her kidney to Kate in what could possibly be one of the most risky operations yet. 

As a result, Anna makes a drastic decision and decides to sue for medical emancipation - a choice that could potentially tear her family apart and have fatal consequences for Kate.

My Sister's Keeper explores the rather touchy subject of parenting, questioning what it means to be a good parent and whether or not it's morally ethical to do whatever it takes to save a child's life, even if it means sacrificing another child in the process.

Buy your copy here.

Salem Falls
Jack St. Bride was a former star athlete and highly educated high school teacher at a girls school in New England. But that was before he was falsely accused of having a highly inappropriate relationship with one of his students.

He serves out an 8 month prison sentence, and decides to move on to Salem Falls once he has served his term.
 
Soon while working as a dish washer  in one of Salem's local diner's, he begins a relationship with Addie, the woman who co-owns and operates the diner where he works.

Of course, it's not long before his past catches up and before he knows it, history repeats itself when a quartet of teens (who have dark secrets of their own) decide to maliciously target Jack with yet another allegation.

All Jack wants to do is live a normal life, but it soon becomes impossible when he finds himself at the centre of a modern-day witch hunt with a town baying for blood and a justice system that almost never seems to be on his side.

Buy your copy here.

The Pact
Chris and Emily come from two neighboured and close families. They've known each other since childhood days and couldn't be any closer.

Of course, if you've known each other since you were barely out of nappies, taking your relationship to a romantic level is something that becomes rather inevitable.

Yet, one night, both families are suddenly called to the hospital with the news that Emily is dead.

Chris proclaims that the gun that killed Emily was intended for himself and, although talks of a suicide pact arises, it isn't long before a local detective  begins to have his doubts.

In this heart wrenching novel, Jodi Picoult explores the dynamics of family relationships, the bonds of friendship and the question of whether or not we really ever know our children.

Buy your copy here.

Nineteen Minutes
17-year old Peter Houghton has endured nothing but physical, verbal and emotional abuse at the hands of his fellow classmates.

His former best friend Josie has ditched him for the popular crowd and quickly becomes the one that often instigates the harassment.

When one final bullying incident sends him over the edge, it leads him to commit an act of violence that sends shockwaves throughout the entire community and changes the lives of all those living in Sterling.

With her trademark psychological insight, Jodi explores the damaging effects that bullying has on the human psyche, what it means to be different in society and whether or not people have the right to judge someone just because they have been labelled as being different.

Buy your copy here.

For more information on the up and coming Cape Town book fair, you can go to the official website, here.

Which of Jodi Picoult's novels are your favourite? And why? Tell us in the comment box below.


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