Oh Jodi

(Yes, it’s not a Stephen King Post!)              

So I wanted to take a second to introduce everyone to another author that I absolutely adore, Jodi Picoult. I’ve been obsessed with her since college. I needed a book to read on a flight home to Los Angeles and stumbled across My Sister’s Keeper, the story of a young girl suing her parents for the rights to her own body. Yep, you read that right. Medical emancipation. It was great. One of those books you immediately start raving to your friends about. It was the book that made me a fan.

            Since then I have read quite a few of her books and have never been disappointed. With every single book I’ve read by her so far I have been able to ask myself one simple question: What would I do if I were in their shoes? What would I do if my daughter wanted to be medically emancipated from me? How would I react if my son was on trial for shooting students at his school? What would I do if my daughter had been raped? Her characters are always placed in difficult and trying positions. She makes you as the reader take a moral stand and evaluate how you look at different and extremely difficult situations. I know a lot of people who don’t like reading books that are emotionally trying and if you are one of those people don’t go anywhere near Mrs. Picoult. I have cried while reading quite a few of her books because these books are meant to tug at your heartstrings. These books are meant to be felt not just read.

            One more thing I must mention about Jodi is the amount of research she puts into each of the books that she writes. She goes above and beyond to educate you as the reader throughout the book. Whether the topic is cancer, leukemia, birth defects, judicial proceedings, it doesn’t matter. If it’s in the book she took the time to find out every detail available about the subject and I really appreciate that in her writing. So if you are in the mood to try something new, definitely give Jodi Picoult a chance.