Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult

5 Star

Every life has a soundtrack. All you have to do is listen.


Music has set the tone for most of Zoe Baxter’s life. There’s the melody that reminds her of the summer she spent rubbing baby oil on her stomach in pursuit of the perfect tan. A dance beat that makes her think of using a fake ID to slip into a nightclub. A dirge that marked the years she spent trying to get pregnant.

For better or for worse, music is the language of memory. It is also the language of love.


In the aftermath of a series of personal tragedies, Zoe throws herself into her career as a music therapist. When an unexpected friendship slowly blossoms into love, she makes plans for a new life, but to her shock and inevitable rage, some people—even those she loves and trusts most—don’t want that to happen. 



Lydia - 5 Star

Jodi Picoult is a master. I marveled often at her abilities and frequently stopped to study her writing - when I wasn’t busy whipping through the pages to see how this novel would end. A few short words and her characters leap off the page.  I laughed, I cried, I thought and talked about the novel and its issues. And I couldn’t stop thinking about it when I put it down.  I suspect this one won’t be forgotten easily. 

Sing You Home was only the second Jodi Picoult novel I have read, and it was completely different the first one, Salem Falls which takes place in a small town and was full of multiple characters.  Here we focus on a few characters who grew in my heart as they navigated through the issues they faced. 

I had no idea what Sing You Home was about when I picked it up, but I expected something a little heavier and true to Picoult’s style, it was full of controversy and surprising choices. Picoult does a fantastic job of painting characters so real and grounded in time and place. After a heart-splitting beginning, this novel journeys deep into the land of reproduction technology and the legalities surrounding frozen embryos. The pain of Zoe’s infertility is achingly obvious as is the love she eventually shares with Vanessa and the discomfort and confusion Max struggles with is palpable. 

The ending surprised me.  I struggled throughout this novel to predict the outcome but would never have been able to figure it out.  It chocked me up and it wasn’t expected which I enjoyed. Fan of Picoult will not be disappointed. 

Thank you to Simon&Schuster Canada for our review copy! All opinions are our own.


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