My Sister's Keeper

Author: Jodi Picoult

One-sentence summary: A 13 year-old girl challenges her role in her family as an unquestioning donor to her older sister with a life-threatening illness.

B.A.D. Girls Book Rating: 7

Our favorite thing about it: We liked the plethora of ethical questions brought up in the novel and how the different scenarios delved into many relational, medical and other issues.

Our least favorite thing about it: We didn’t care for how the book ended. We thought it a little bit trite and convenient. We would have liked a more untidy ending, which we believe would have been in keeping with the difficult issues dealt with in the story.

Main Topics of Discussion: Sisters, Motherhood/Fatherhood and Parenting, Illness, Death/Dying, Choices, Genetics/IVF

Our favorite quote: “I came to your office because just for once, I wanted it to be about me instead of Kate.” (291)

Notes: Overall, most of us enjoyed this book. Besides the ending, the other things that annoyed us were the occasional “cheesy” phrasing or dialogue, but for the most part, we liked how the story was crafted. One other thing we all agreed on disliking was the relationship between Julia and Campbell. We thought the reason they had stayed apart for so long was totally bogus and unbelievable and we really didn’t see how their story had anything whatsoever to do with the main story of the book. We discussed how Picoult really did a good job of balancing all the different voices in her book. The chapters were all told from a different point of view (7 total, I think) and each character even had their own font. We most appreciated how the questions raised were never presented as just black and white. As readers, we were constantly challenged to look at things from another point of view and reassess what we originally thought. We had a great time discussing what we would have done and what we thought of the decisions that some of the characters made. We sympathized and disagreed with the characters…sometimes simultaneously. The book kept us interested and we agreed that we would have loved to see how Picoult would have constructed an ending that went along the same lines as the rest of the story instead of making a twist that seemed contrived.

Memorable Meeting Moments: Chef Josh did it again…we enjoyed White Peach Sangrias, Prosciutto and Tomato Puree appetizers, Pan Seared Red Snapper with Olive Tapenade and Saffron Rice with Spring Vegetables. Then, there were the made-to-order crepes that were simply amazing (and unfortunately, not pictured)!