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abicaro17's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Medical trauma, Pandemic/Epidemic, Medical content, and Mental illness
Moderate: Confinement, Dementia, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
danyclarice's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
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Firstly. Wow. This book blew me away. This is the first book I have read by Jodi Picoult and I am in love with her writing. I think she is an amazing storyteller and brought to life the Galápagos so vividly in this book.
This book is a slow-burn with emotions bleeding into every page. It feels so surreal to read a book about COVID when we have all lived through it. Even though I live on the opposite side of the world, I resonated with the raw emotions and stillness Diana felt in her life.
This book won’t be for everyone. The plot is fairly simple and is focused primarily on the complexity of the character’s relationships with each other, and tackles themes of isolation and parent-loss. More than that, I can understand why some people would choose to avoid this book because COVID centres as the main driver for the plot. Although Diana’s story is fiction, Picoult, as shared in the author’s note, complied multiple stories of COVID survivors together to accurately depict lucid dream states, and long-term effects of being on a ventilator, which may be triggering for some audiences.
For me, this book forced me to confront many of the philosophies I live by post-COVID. Recently single, finished with two degrees, ready to move out and get a full-time job, I have constantly measured success academically and have a need to quantify my goals.
This year I will gain three certificates in UX Design and Project Management, I will get a boyfriend by the end of the year, marry by 30 and have children by 35… I think we’ve all been taught to measure our success in this way. In fact, like Diana, Picoult has taught us in the book how to open our hearts, forgive each other, and take COVID as an opportunity to assess ourselves, our priorities, and those that we love and are dear to us. I realise I need to slow down in life and appreciate what is right in front of me. Why am I focused on being happy in the future if I’m not even happy now?
As a happily married American women with three children, I know Picoult’s between the line messages can appear very complex and confusing for a reader such as myself. But right now, this book has contributed to present philosophies I will take going forward. Maybe I’ll revisit this book is 5, 10 years and gain a completely different message from it.
Graphic: Death of parent and Dementia
Moderate: Self harm
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
This book is heavily plot driven by COVID and describes in detail the beginning of the pandemic, being on ventilators and patient death.trutiffany's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Terminal illness and Death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Suicide
COVID pandemicmoettel98's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Chronic illness, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Self harm, Mental illness, Vomit, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Dementia, Dysphoria, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Confinement, Grief, and Medical trauma
bre88's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Graphic: Self harm, Death of parent, Grief, and Medical content
Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Bullying, Colonisation, Gun violence, Homophobia, and Outing
dhalirious's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Self harm, and Suicide
tojtwl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
It's very updated with present times, talking about the first few days of a world with COVID-19. The main character (girl) is stranded on an island where she was supposed to have taken a trip with her boyfriend...except he, as a doctor, couldn't make it because it was all hands on deck at the hospital.
So her adventure begins on the island where she meets people and deals with fuzzy internet signals and goes out swimming one day and faces a strong current...
The second part of the book
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
mhatfield's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I remember there were some passages in Part 1 that made me feel so much, they nearly took my breath away. I wish I had highlighted them (in fact, I might've but it was a library rental that I no longer have). Picoult captured what it truly felt like to live in a state of quarantine in 2020 and all the things it made me (and our society as a whole) think about. Like the environment and importance of nature preservation, living in the moment, gratitude for the little things, the meaning of one's career... the question is, what didn't she manage to touch on?
Bravo, Picoult. An absolute masterpiece.
--
NOTE / TRIGGER WARNING: I felt ready to read this book because I've reached the acceptance stage of COVID grief, but I would not recommend this book if you've lost someone to COVID, as it's quite triggering.
Moderate: Medical trauma, Grief, Suicide, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
lpdx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Dementia, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Self harm
Moderate: Death, Grief, Blood, Suicide, Abandonment, Alcohol, Confinement, and Mental illness
Minor: Infidelity
pagesandtealeavess's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Self harm and Terminal illness
Minor: Suicide