I am now halfway through the novel "Change of Heart" by Jodi Picoult. The book is about a murderer named Shay Bourne, Shay was given a death sentence by court and he has been awaiting his sentence for eleven years. He was moved to a new part of the jail at the beginning of the story, this part is 1-tier (a place for the worst of the worst criminals) Shay is coming off as an almost Jesus like figure because miracles occur while he's there. It's really hard for me as the reader to accept this character because I can't bring myself to forgive him for murdering a seven year old girl and her father. This is the first book I've read where a guilty murderer has been portrayed as a "good guy" in a story.I think this a really hard topic to write on for three reasons: you have to get the reader to forgive the main character for the story to continue; the main character has never actually narrated in this story so far; the reader has so far heard nothing that would make them want to forgive the main character.
If you are someone like me- who can get so caught up in books that I'll cry if a character I'd grown attached to dies, flinch if something surprising happens, or laugh out loud if something really funny happens. Then you'll know that forgiveness is hard in real life and books. It's hard to forgive a character that murders a seven year old girl for apparently no reason and then her father. It's hard to forgive a crime that severe that seemed to be done for no purpose, especially when that family, the one he destroyed, had only been kind to him. There were pictures described at the beginning of the book that were of the girl and her father after they had been shot, there was evidence all around that Shay Bourne was guilty of killing these two innocent people. Hearing all of this at the beginning makes you develop an opinion for the character, and considering what you hear about its not a very good one. It can be hard to forgive one who is so obviously guilty.
Shay Bourne has never narrated. There has been lawyers, attorneys, the mother/wife of the victims, another imprisoned murderer, a nurse, but never not even once has Shay Bourne spoken for himself. The story is centered around a mystery man, the man behind the curtain, the one you hear about but never know exactly what is going on in his head. Most great stories include being able to connect with the main character, this is a great story but it doesn't really offer that. Shay is such a drastic character- he murders a little girl and then refuses to kill a fly and somehow brings a dead bird back to life. He murders two innocent people and then decides to donate his heart to the little sister of the girl he killed. After a while you just have to admit that you truly have no idea who Shay is and what he might do next.
The only reason Shay offers as to why he killed them was "She's better off dead". This was in reference to the little girl he killed, the seven year old, smart, beautiful, healthy, little girl who's life he ended. It is so difficult to understand this guys reasoning- he offers barely any explanation as to why he decided to kill but he never says anything about not being guilty. It's so confusing! you start to finally like the character and assume that there was a mistake and he's not so bad after all, and the he says something like "she's better off dead". It throws you off you're just left there hanging with you're hopes crushed and you realize that you have absolutely no idea who this guy is and why he did such a terrible thing.
A book where you have to work hard to imagine the main character not being guilty is a hard book to read. Jodi Picoult in general is great at writing books with a suspense like storyline. I'm still holding on to the idea that the crime was not entirely his fault. I'm still hoping that he'll say something unsuspected that reveals the true murderer. I'm still thinking that they're all wrong and there was a mistake. I'm still wishing that this guy wont die. Because, yeah he did something terrible, but he eventually begins to grow on you, you finally begin hoping that he'll be okay. Because I finally realized that a good book is not only those that make connect, but those that, in the end, can give you hope
Friday, October 26, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Lone Wolf
"Lone Wolf" by Jodi Picoult is by far one of the best books I have ever read. I love Jodi Picoult's writing in general because she gets this aspect of suspense in every book. I usually tend to go for the complicated plot, multiple perspective/ narrator kind of book and this has it all. The book is from the perspective of Edward (the son), Cara (the daughter), Georgie (the ex-wife/mother), Joe (husband of Georgie), and Luke (the father/ex-husband). The story is about Luke, he is in the hospital after having been in a car accident with his daughter, Cara. Luke has serious brain damage and the family is trying to decide whether to let him go or keep him on life support. Edward thinks that they should let him go and Cara doesn't. It ends up as an entire court case over who can be Luke's legal guardian. I really just love this multiple narration and I really want to try it sometime, I'm going to try to explain how Jodi Picoult made it work. I'm really sorry if this blog post gets a little complicated, but I'll do my best.
First on Luke's parts of the story. The parts of the story that Luke tells are usually flashbacks- moments from his childhood or from when he was a young adult. there are a couple more recent ones but they are never about the complete present. Luke is currently brain dead so he can't talk about whats going on right "now". Luke is the "Wolf Man" he spent two years living in the wild with a pack of wolves that he got to accept him. I love the parts of the stories when he's talking about being with the wolves because it's such an amazing thing to think about. It just really gets your imagination going. It was really smart of the author to use this character for flashbacks because it's convenient and it makes sense. When things are going on in the present that requires too much background information then the author just puts in a chapter about what they were discussing.
For the chapters where either Georgie or Joe are narrating its great to get an extra perspective. Georgie is the mother figure so you can really get into the characters head and understand the instincts that make her support one of her children in court instead of the other. I'm pretty sure there's a lot of people out there that would love to know whats going on in their parents head and these parts of the story gives you a good idea. I haven't read many books that include a desperate mother having to choose between her children. So its really interesting to hear about it. I think one of the really great things about Georgie is that she's really unlike anyone else in the book.
For Joe's chapters the authors vast knowledge of law finally makes its appearance. One of the great things about Jodi Picoult is that she can incorporate this really interesting perspective about court. Joe is a lawyer and he is defending Edward in court. Here the author is able to explain terms and how requirements work and certain sentences and trials and all of that criminal justice info. You might think that it would be super confusing to read but it really isn't. The court scenes add a specific urgency to the story. There are parts where its so realistic that you feel you're actually in the court room and you can hear the constant "Objection!"
I'm going to put the purposes of Edward and Cara's sections together. In any good multiple narration story you have to have the two people that are on different sides. I think that's what makes it the most interesting, getting to hear both people's side to a story. I think a great example of this is a scene where Cara see's Edward's action as cruel and evil and Edward views them as merciful and right. The best part is that you can agree on both sides - yeah it did seem heartless but it was really done out of love.
In conclusion, multiple narration is part of what made this a great book. I've learned how Jodi Picoult succeeded at multiple narration. For one, use the character to its full extent. If it's a person who's a genius than have them explain some amazing stuff. If its a person with a very strong belief then explain that belief and why they have it. Also, try to get some of the narrators on opposite sides of something because it can make it really interesting. Lastly, make sure that the characters are all very different and unique so that their perspective on something can be special and not already stated. Loved this book, love this author, if you like complicated plots then definitely try this book.
First on Luke's parts of the story. The parts of the story that Luke tells are usually flashbacks- moments from his childhood or from when he was a young adult. there are a couple more recent ones but they are never about the complete present. Luke is currently brain dead so he can't talk about whats going on right "now". Luke is the "Wolf Man" he spent two years living in the wild with a pack of wolves that he got to accept him. I love the parts of the stories when he's talking about being with the wolves because it's such an amazing thing to think about. It just really gets your imagination going. It was really smart of the author to use this character for flashbacks because it's convenient and it makes sense. When things are going on in the present that requires too much background information then the author just puts in a chapter about what they were discussing.
For the chapters where either Georgie or Joe are narrating its great to get an extra perspective. Georgie is the mother figure so you can really get into the characters head and understand the instincts that make her support one of her children in court instead of the other. I'm pretty sure there's a lot of people out there that would love to know whats going on in their parents head and these parts of the story gives you a good idea. I haven't read many books that include a desperate mother having to choose between her children. So its really interesting to hear about it. I think one of the really great things about Georgie is that she's really unlike anyone else in the book.
For Joe's chapters the authors vast knowledge of law finally makes its appearance. One of the great things about Jodi Picoult is that she can incorporate this really interesting perspective about court. Joe is a lawyer and he is defending Edward in court. Here the author is able to explain terms and how requirements work and certain sentences and trials and all of that criminal justice info. You might think that it would be super confusing to read but it really isn't. The court scenes add a specific urgency to the story. There are parts where its so realistic that you feel you're actually in the court room and you can hear the constant "Objection!"
I'm going to put the purposes of Edward and Cara's sections together. In any good multiple narration story you have to have the two people that are on different sides. I think that's what makes it the most interesting, getting to hear both people's side to a story. I think a great example of this is a scene where Cara see's Edward's action as cruel and evil and Edward views them as merciful and right. The best part is that you can agree on both sides - yeah it did seem heartless but it was really done out of love.
In conclusion, multiple narration is part of what made this a great book. I've learned how Jodi Picoult succeeded at multiple narration. For one, use the character to its full extent. If it's a person who's a genius than have them explain some amazing stuff. If its a person with a very strong belief then explain that belief and why they have it. Also, try to get some of the narrators on opposite sides of something because it can make it really interesting. Lastly, make sure that the characters are all very different and unique so that their perspective on something can be special and not already stated. Loved this book, love this author, if you like complicated plots then definitely try this book.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
13 Reasons Why
I just finished reading "13 Reasons Why" by Jay Asher. The main character of this book was Clay. Clay is this really sweet guy who liked a girl named Hannah Baker. In the beginning of the story you find out that Hannah has killed herself, but no one knows why. Then a couple weeks after her suicide Clay receives a box of 7 cassette tapes and on these Hannah explains why she killed herself and lists every person who had something to do with it. Clay doesn’t know what he did to hurt her so he’s really worried about listening to the tapes. I think the resolution of this story would be Clay finding his closure about Hannah’s death.
When Clay finds out that you only get the tapes if you had something to do with her death he gets really upset. I think that it would be terrible to get an audio suicide note from someone who you were close to. I felt so bad for Clay because he has to get through all of this pain of listening to how people hurt Hannah. The tapes really traumatize him because he was so close to Hannah. Can you imagine listening to how people hurt someone you cared about? I think I would go crazy. Especially that you’re hearing about it after you can’t do anything to help the person.
Clay originally couldn’t get any closure because he never had a chance to say goodbye to her. He had kissed her at a party and then she got really upset and wouldn’t explain to him why. He had wanted to stay and help her but she told him to leave and he did. He felt guilty for leaving because he thought he should’ve stayed and helped her. I think that if he had stayed maybe she would’ve been able to calm down and not go to such extreme measures as killing herself, but really it wasn’t his fault. She had told him to leave and if he didn’t listen to her, even if he was trying to help, it might have pushed her over the edge even sooner. That’s why Clay needed the original closure.
When Clay first began listening to the tapes he was trying to figure out if it was a joke or some kind of mistake. He doesn’t know why he’s on the tapes. The stress of listening to the tapes and waiting for his part to come up is really stressing him out. Hannah says in the beginning of the tapes “And you lucky number 13, you can take the tapes straight to hell.” Clay gets more and more stressed as the tapes go on because he’s hearing about these terrible things and he’s worried that he might be number 13. Between these two things he’s getting more and more confused and scared.
Throughout the story Clay is getting more and more upset as he hears what Hannah has been through. By the end he is a nervous wreck. Clay originally needed help to let go of Hannah and stop thinking about her suicide. Even though the tapes hurt him they overall help him understand why she did it and it helped him realize that he wasn’t to blame. I think that in the story the tapes are what help him find closure but throughout the story it seems as if they are what’s bothering him in the first place. I can’t even imagine how a person like Clay would feel if they had to hear something like this. But it’s nice to know that its helps them in the end.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Am I Blue?
I think that the conflict in "Am I Blue?" by Bruce Coville is mainly person vs society issue.The main character/narrator, Vincent(or Vince), is trying to figure out whether he is gay or not. He is constantly bullied and tormented for being a homosexual. The story goes into the issues of gaybashing and how people don't realize how many gay people there are in the world. One small theme in the story is revealing how full of gay people the world really is. Its a fictitious story and so they accomplish this feat by turning every gay person "coast to coast" blue.
I think that Bruce Coville has a great imagination and really uses it throughout the piece- everyone who is gay is blue and there are different shades of blue. Some people (like Vince) are only slightly blue while others are "as blue as a summer sky". I think that using this imaginative idea really helps the reader grasp the concept of the story without feeling that the moral is forced on to them. I think the story helps people realize that the society hating gays is wrong because its just who they are.
In the story Vince meets his fairy godfather, Melvin for the first time. Melvin is a man who was killed by gaybashers and when in heaven decided to become a fairy godfather. Vince is skeptical when he first meets Melvin but when he realizes that he really is magic he starts to listen to what he has to say.With Melvin's help he ends up wishing for the third of "The Great Gay Fantasies". The third fantasy is that every gay person in the country would turn blue for a day. The point of this would be so that all of the gay people who were "In hiding" could finally come out. and it would also force "all the straights in the world stop imagining that they didn't know any gay people." in other words everyone would realize that normal people could be gay. I think its great that people are writing about this because it is a real world issue even though some people do not want to acknowledge it. I don't personally know any homophobes but I know that they're out there.
On that subject a detail in the story was that a "Hypocritical" congressman who "Happened to be a notorious republican homophobe" was gay. As was Vince's main bully- Butch Carrigan- who repeatedly beat up Vince for being gay. I think its sad that people would do that but its probably out of fear- that its wrong and that they don't understand why they feel that way. But maybe if the people who didn't like gays realized that they can be normal people too than maybe they wouldn't hate them as much. I think if a person who hated gays because they thought that being gay was wrong or too different realized that their best friend of ten years has been secretly gay the whole time maybe he or she would realize that normal people can be gay, and also people that you could be friends with for ten years.
Vince doesn't completely know whether or not he himself is gay but he is beat up and called "Faggot, Fruit, and Fairy" anyway. This gives him a personal knowledge of how terrible gaybashing is. I think that gaybashing is just terrible and serious and that people have no reason to do it. I think that if you have a problem with someone it has to be a real issue that you have with them not just that they're gay or lesbian or not. I know lots of gay and lesbian couples and I think that they are all amazing, interesting people who have just as much personality as everyone else. They're normal respectable people and i just wish that everyone would understand that.
I really liked this story, it was full of creativity, imagination, and truth. The world is full of amazing, normal, great, gay people and if it takes turning everyone who is gay blue for people to accept it than I hope someday something like that will happen. Bring on "Blueday".
I think that Bruce Coville has a great imagination and really uses it throughout the piece- everyone who is gay is blue and there are different shades of blue. Some people (like Vince) are only slightly blue while others are "as blue as a summer sky". I think that using this imaginative idea really helps the reader grasp the concept of the story without feeling that the moral is forced on to them. I think the story helps people realize that the society hating gays is wrong because its just who they are.
In the story Vince meets his fairy godfather, Melvin for the first time. Melvin is a man who was killed by gaybashers and when in heaven decided to become a fairy godfather. Vince is skeptical when he first meets Melvin but when he realizes that he really is magic he starts to listen to what he has to say.With Melvin's help he ends up wishing for the third of "The Great Gay Fantasies". The third fantasy is that every gay person in the country would turn blue for a day. The point of this would be so that all of the gay people who were "In hiding" could finally come out. and it would also force "all the straights in the world stop imagining that they didn't know any gay people." in other words everyone would realize that normal people could be gay. I think its great that people are writing about this because it is a real world issue even though some people do not want to acknowledge it. I don't personally know any homophobes but I know that they're out there.
On that subject a detail in the story was that a "Hypocritical" congressman who "Happened to be a notorious republican homophobe" was gay. As was Vince's main bully- Butch Carrigan- who repeatedly beat up Vince for being gay. I think its sad that people would do that but its probably out of fear- that its wrong and that they don't understand why they feel that way. But maybe if the people who didn't like gays realized that they can be normal people too than maybe they wouldn't hate them as much. I think if a person who hated gays because they thought that being gay was wrong or too different realized that their best friend of ten years has been secretly gay the whole time maybe he or she would realize that normal people can be gay, and also people that you could be friends with for ten years.
Vince doesn't completely know whether or not he himself is gay but he is beat up and called "Faggot, Fruit, and Fairy" anyway. This gives him a personal knowledge of how terrible gaybashing is. I think that gaybashing is just terrible and serious and that people have no reason to do it. I think that if you have a problem with someone it has to be a real issue that you have with them not just that they're gay or lesbian or not. I know lots of gay and lesbian couples and I think that they are all amazing, interesting people who have just as much personality as everyone else. They're normal respectable people and i just wish that everyone would understand that.
I really liked this story, it was full of creativity, imagination, and truth. The world is full of amazing, normal, great, gay people and if it takes turning everyone who is gay blue for people to accept it than I hope someday something like that will happen. Bring on "Blueday".
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