Review of Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

Rating - 3

 

Max and Zoe Baxter have tried for 9 years to have a child. After Zoe miscarried a child at 28 weeks, Max decides he can't handle it anymore and divorces Zoe. Zoe and Max go their separate
ways...Max lives with his brother and sister-in-law who belong to an evangelical Christian Church. After nearly being killed after a drunken accident, Max embraces the church's teachings and becomes "born again". Zoe meets and becomes best friends with the guidance counselor at the school where she performs music therapy, Vanessa Shaw. Vanessa is a lesbian and eventually, Zoe realizes she is too and the two women marry. When Vanessa and Zoe decide they would like to have a child, Zoe remembers that there are three frozen embryos left from when she and Max were trying to have a child. When she contacts the fertility clinic to use the embryos, she is told that she must have Max's permission since they are biologically half his. When Max discusses the issue with his pastor, the pastor convinces him that homosexuality is a sin and that the embryos shouldn't be given to people who live a sinful life. A court battle ensues.


This is a typical Picoult book that takes a controversial issue...in this case, homosexuality...  and presents the conflict from all points of view. The book is a fast-paced, emotional, instructive and entertaining read. Unfortunately, the story features too many sub-plots which were not fully explored and, at times, left unresolved. This would have been better if it were more tightly plotted.

Review: The Match: "Savior Siblings" and One Family's Battle to Heal Their Daughter by Beth Whitehouse

Rating: 5
Non-Fiction

In 2006, 4 year old Katie Trebing received a bone marrow transplant that would hopefully allow her to live a long and full life. The donor was her younger brother, Christopher, an exact genetic match to Katie and who was conceived by the Trebings for the express purpose of saving his sister's life. Beth Whtehouse, a Pulitzer-winning journalist followed the Trebings through the grueling process and tells the story impartially and with compassion.
Whitehouse allows the reader inside the minds and hearts of Stacy and Steve Trebing as they wrestle with this monumental decision. She explains the complex scientific, medical, and ethical issues at stake in layman's terms.
Although this is a work of non-fiction, it reads like a novel. It is a fascinating look at a highly controversial topic.