Leaving Time by Jodie Picoult

Jodie Picoult has taken me into the world of metaphysics of  Serenity Jones and the world of elephants of Thomas and Alice Metcalf in the book, Leaving Time. I am on page 165.  The main characters are Jenna Metcalf, a 13 year old teen; Alice Metcalf, a scientist/elephant researcher and Jenna's Mom; Serenity Jones, formerly a celebrity psychic, and Virgil Stanhope, an alcoholic private detective and former cop. So far the story has been told by these 4 major characters. Alice, however, has been missing for 10 years. Jenna is looking for her and has recruited the other two characters, the psychic and the private investigator, to find out if she is dead or alive. If she is alive, why did she leave? Why did she leave her daughter?

The pace of the story started off slowly but once Jenna met Serenity the pace of the story has been moving along quickly. There is a back story to Serenity and she is intrigued by Jenna's case. There is a back story to Virgil who was briefly familiar with the missing Alice.  The missing Alice and the accidental death of an employee at the Metcalf's elephant sanctuary have haunted him for 10 years. It was fairly easy to get him on board to help find Alice. He is,of course, skeptical of Serenity.

There is a whole host of facts about elephants in the book. I have learned a herd of elephants are led by the matriarch. Elephants can only breathe through their trunk not their mouth. Elephants really do seem to have long memories, they think, feel, hold grudges and experience grief.

The themes in the book seem to be grief and memory. Interestingly, Thomas Metcalf has very little memory and has been institutionalized just around the time of his wife's disappearance.  If you have lost someone you loved through death, this book will tug at your heart as you read the psychic's point of view in relation to death and the spirit world.

At this point, this is not my favorite Picoult book but she always has a twist in the end so I am anticipating an interesting twist.  I am on page 165 and I have more to read. I could change my mind.

My all time favorite books by Picoult are My Sister's Keeper and Nineteen minutes.  I also enjoyed reading Second Glance which included elements of the paranormal world like this book

Book Buzz March 2011

Oprah's website lists a new book by Jodie Picoult, Sing You Home, under the heading, 17 Books to look for in March 2011 . Also on the list are History of a Suicide: My Sister's Unfinished Life by Jill Bialosky and Minding Frankie by Maeve Binchy.

Handle with Care by Jodie Picoult

I am now on page 193 of Handle with Care. Charlotte, one of the characters, is a mother in conflict. She wants to sue for wrongful birth. This means that she wants to sue based on the fact that the doctor did not alert her from the first scan that the baby would be born with OI, a genetic disease, that causes the baby's bones to be broken easily even from within the womb.

Here is why Charlotte is in conflict. The doctor is her best friend of some 8 years. Their older daughters are best friends. Charlotte's husband thinks the lawsuit is dishonest since they would have to say they would have aborted had they known from the first scan that something was wrong. The book is written from the point of view of several characters and most of it is written as if it were directed to the now five year old with OI.

Another drama is unfolding. The lawyer Marin is searching for her birth mother. Picoult introduces the supernatural in this book like she has done with at least one other of her books that I have read. Marin has been assured by a Psychic that her answers will come from certain key people. One by one these key people are coming into Marin's life to give her answers.

So far the most tragic figure is not Willow the sick child but Charlotte's older daughter Amelia who feels disconnected, like an outsider, in the family and at school. I read My Sister's Keeper. I'll really be upset if it turns out that Amelia, the well child, ends up dying.

Ten Most Challenged Library Books

It is not time yet for Banned Books Week, usually a week in September, but I like this graphical representation of the ten most challenged books. This means that people want to ban these books from libraries.

One of my favorite books is on the list, My Sister's Keeper by Jodie Picoult.

Jodie Picoult's Hot Button Theme

It's Jodie Picoult again with another hot button theme. This time it's school shootings. Her latest book is Nineteen Minutes .