Handle with Care

In many ways Handle With Care had all the elements of a Jodi Picoult novel that I've grown to love. The problem I had with this one was the point of view Picoult used to tell her story to us the readers. The story was compelling as always; a young girl Willow, suffers from a rare disease which leaves every bone extremely brittle and subject to breakage at almost anytime. But each chapter begins with a character in 6 year old Willow's life telling Willow her own life story. From before Willow's birth, right up to her present with all the complications and details that we as adult readers of Picoult's novels would expect. I just couldn't get comfortable that idea and it's not till the very last chapter that it becomes clear that the show more characters weren't really telling the story to Willow. It was more like each character having an inner dialog in their own minds with the Willow that might have been. Sadly, the concept just didn't do it for me. That being said, I'll admit to being touched by many many moments in the novel. You can always count on Jodi for that ! show less

In writing about a little girl born with brittle bone disease and all the medical and legal issues revolving around that, Jodi Picoult has not shied away from focusing on the most difficult issues, ones that are not easily understood or resolved. I thank her for that. However, this is definitely one of the worst-written Picoult books I have read. The editing or lack thereof is horrendous, almost embarrassing. Picoult acknowledges conferring with many medical personnel and conducting much research on this disease before writing the book, yet she got some very basic facts, ones any high school kid would know,entirely wrong. How could she confuse the names for the major arm bones with those of the leg, for example? Either she is writing show more these books too quickly or her editor was on sabbatical the year this was written.

My second major complaint with this book is the ending. Picoult loves to end her books with an unexpected yet dramatic twist but she missed the boat here. She contrived an ending that made absolutely no sense whatsoever and one that completely negated her entire theme. I was so angry, I sent her an email demanding an explanation. Her very prompt answer was no more satisfying than the book was. I am convinced even she did not understand what she had done and why.

Picoult had a similar unhappy twist in My Sister's Keeper but in that book, I could see how the ending tied into what she had written in the beginning of the book; it made sense even if I didn't like it and that is the mark of a good writer. I am hoping her next books are more carefully edited and more cohesive. show less

It's been a long time since I've read such a thoroughly horrible book. I'd give this zero stars if I could. It was pure dreck, through and through, and I seriously resent the time I spent with it. Every single character is unremittingly miserable and unpleasant--there is not a single character who inspires any spark of affection. The motivations for their constant destructive actions are so cliched as to be actually inexplicable, and as if that weren't enough the absurd ending leeches any possible meaning from it all. Really I think the only explanation is that Picoult is a raging nihilist masquerading as a thoughtful Issues writer. I know this was written for book groups--my bookstore job suggests that that's her primary show more readership--but she notches everything up to such a level of misery and indecision that nothing means anything. Except I don't think the nihilism is at all intentional so--what IS the point? There is none, I think, and that is a serious flaw in an Issues novel--it has to have a point because nothing in the plot, characters, or quality of the writing make it worth reading otherwise. show less

I'm a huge fan of Picoult's books and this one didn't disappoint. I was actually prepared to not like this book, to be honest. Having grown up with a younger sister who was severely disabled, I was offended by the idea of the wrongful birth lawsuit. However, while I never could fathom going through with such a lawsuit, I was able to see the mother's point-of-view. As always, Picoult adds interesting twists throughout the story and there's never a dull moment. Besides the multiple relationships and struggles (internal and external) within Willow's family, I also had a personal interest in the plot concerning the attorney's search for her birth mother and feelings regarding her adoption. Jodi Picoult's perfect recipe continues to impress: show more she has once again taken a sensitive subject, presented the unpopular view, added a few unexpected twists, and created a novel that leaves one wondering if all things in life are really as black and white as we like to pretend. show less

"Things break all the time. Glass, and dishes, and fingernails. Cars and contracts and potato chips. You can break a record, a horse, a dollar. You can break the ice. There are coffee breaks and lunch breaks and prison breaks. Day breaks, waves break, voices break. Chains can be broken. So can silence, and fever............Promises break. Hearts break." And so begins a story that had me completely engrossed from the very start. It is the story, or should I say stories, of Charlotte, Piper, Sean, Marin, Amelia and the little girl central to all, Willow.
Willow was born with a debilitating disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta sometimes referred to as brittle bone disease. For Willow's mother, Charlotte, life has changed dramatically by show more her birth, she is her main caregiver and constantly monitors her every move in order to avoid a break. Although her family life is relatively happy under the circumstances she and her husband are financially strapped due to Willow's special needs. Charlotte ultimately embarks on a wrongful birth lawsuit that will effect the lives of her family, her friends and, naturally, herself. The reader will ask 'Was it love or financial stress that provoked the lawsuit?' 'Was it all worth it?' There are many things that need to be handled with care and many moral questions abound.
As this was my first Picoult book, I found it to be very thought provoking and will look forward to reading more of her. show less

After being somewhat disappointed with Jodi Picoult's last novel (Change of Heart) it appears that she has returned to what she does best with this one. Yes, it is reminiscent in some ways of My Sister's Keeper (my favourite of her novels), and yes, she can be a little formulaic in her writing, but this does not detract from the quality of the writing itself, or the fact that the storyline is sufficient to draw you right in.

Willow is a young child who was born with osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease). She has endured dozens of broken bones, associated surgeries and other health complications throughout her short life, and will continue to do so as her condition cannot be cured. The story, which takes place over a period of show more around two years, follows the wrongful birth lawsuit (a type of medical malpractice) filed by Willow's mother Charlotte against her former ob-gyn - and former best friend - Piper. The contention is that Willow's condition should have been diagnosed in utero, giving Charlotte and father Sean the option to terminate the pregnancy, thus preventing her future suffering.

As with many of Jodi Picoult's novels, Handle With Care examines the actions taken by ordinary people confronted by extraordinary circumstances. Whether or not you agree with those actions is a matter of personal ethics, but it does us good to be reminded that there are many issues, such as this one, which are morally complex, and that despite our individual belief systems perhaps we don't really know what lengths we would be prepared to go to until faced with a given reality. The characters in the novel are all flawed in some way and, while it is easy to see and to condemn their flaws, there remains that prickle of conscience reminding us that we, too, are imperfect. Given the same set of circumstances, we may act differently, but would we act "better"? show less

Disappointing. Do you think I've gone off Jodi Picoult? Because usually I am, at the very least, engaged by the moral dilemmas with which she slaps the reader upside the head. But this time, the dilemma didn't seem authentic. Story: Mother of a lovely 6 year old who suffers from brittle bone disease sues her gynecologist (who happens to be her best friend!) for not diagnosing the disease in the womb - SO SHE COULDV'E HAD AN ABORTION. Yeah. And the truth is, she wouldn't have had an abortion anyway, so not only is she a worthless turncoat friend, and a shockingly oblivious-to-her-daughter's-emotional-trauma mother, she's also a big liar. The hook is supposed to be that the kid needs the money to pay for medical things, and shouldn't a show more mother do ANYTHING for her child? Lie, cheat, steal and kill, and all that? (Thanks for your input, Scarlett.)

The problem is, though, that this isn't actually a moral dilemma. It's an immoral dilemma. Because Mom is wrong from the get-go, on so many levels, AND she is also a bad mommy, not just because she is willing to go to court and say she would have terminated her daughter's life, but also because she is abrogating one of motherhood's first duties: to teach her child how to be a person of integrity.

Yeah. I judge her. Jodi Picoult should know better, too. So the book is kind of icky...I suggest reading one of her earlier works. show less