Book Report: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

I know this isn't a new book, but I did say I was dusting off my bookshelf. I give this book a major thumbs up! I loved it! So, without further adieu...

This book is about a girl named Anna, who was created to be a genetic match for her sister. The sister has a rare form of leukemia. All that was needed is the umbilical cord at birth. Nothing else. But it doesn't stop there. Then, Anna decides she wants it to end. She files for medical emancipation from her parents when they want her to donate a kidney. The only catch is that her sister will die from kidney failure.

I really like the author's style. She writes from the perspective of each character. There is even a side story with the lawyer. It's a very emotional story. I didn't think I would like it. It ended up being that I couldn't put it down. I laughed, I cried. It was great. Now, I want to see the movie. I'm glad I read it first. I want to discuss how some things in the book pulled at my heart strings. I hope I don't give too much away.

On Having Children:
From Sara's perspective (the mother)

I realize then that we never have children, we receive them. And sometimes it's not for quite as long as we would have expected or hoped. But it is still far better than never having had those children at all. "Kate," I confess, "I'm so sorry."
She pushes back from me, until she can look me in the eye. "Don't be," she says fiercely. "Because I'm not." She tries so damn hard. "It was a good one, Mom, wasn't it?"
I bite my lip, feel the heaviness of tears. "It was the best," I answer.

This sums up a lot about the way a parent feels. I've always wondered how I ever lived without my children. Oddly enough, before I had them, I lived. I was more free to do things. Came and went as I pleased. Slept in. Went to the bathroom by myself. But I always think, "How did I ever exist without them?" I know I did. I remember life before children, but I don't understand it anymore. I am complete now, whereas before I wasn't. I just didn't realize it. Which is why Sara's realization that we receive children hit home. They are gifts. Gifts to teach us about ourselves, life, our spouse, our parents, and love. I learned to see myself as a child through my parents' eyes--- the love and joy they felt, to feel how they loved their child. I loved my grandfather in a new way when I seen myself in my child. I realized then how much he loved me. That's a wonderful gift: to love a child at the same time as feeling loved as a child. It's like coming back on yourself, a circle, completion. I thank the Lord so much for the gift of knowing my grandfather in that way. Having your child(ren) is the best blessing. I wouldn't change anything about my life, not one heart ache or screw up, because I wouldn't have Gina and Lolly.

The Circle of Life:
From Anna's perspective

Ask any kid who's made it through the fourth grade and they can tell you: water never stops moving. Rain falls, and runs down a mountain into a river. The river finds it's way to the ocean. It evaporates, like a soul, into the clouds. And then, like everything else, it starts all over again.


This is life, some would say. I like circle of life better. It makes it easy to understand our path. Where ever we go in life or whatever we do, brings us back to ourselves. Brings us back with a lesson. Someone named Kelly once told me that the only way she could get over something bad was to figure out the lesson she was meant to learn from it. I have found that is easier said than done.

Me as a waitress:

From Sara's perspective (the mother)

You get to know them (the nurses in the hospital) as they know you, because they take the place of friends you once had in a previous life, the one before diagnosis. Donna's daughter, for example, is studying to be a vet. Ludmilla, on the graveyard shift, wears laminated pictures of Sanibel Island clipped like charms on her stethoscope, because it's where she wants to retire. Willie, the male nurse, has a weakness for chocolate and a wife expecting triplets.

I realized some time ago that we have regulars not just because of our food but because the waitresses comfort the people who come in to eat. I help wake up part of Greensboro. I become part of their routine. If I'm out for a length of time, I get the third degree, so to speak. People come in and ask about me. They ask me about other girls. They know things about us. Like Mrs. Wilhoit, for example, loaned me this book to read because she knows I like books. I'm friends with several diners on Facebook. Mr. Covington brings me newspapers from the cities he delivers to in his truck. Marty brought me a shirt back from Florida and gave me a pin that represents his racing horse. Mr. Soprano tells me about his racing greyhounds. Mr. Leonard gave me his favorite old TV. The list goes on in this manner. I couldn't possibly list them all!

Besides all the extra stuff I added on to this "book report," this was a really good read. I suggest it.

Verdict: Read it!