Reviews with content warning for Medical content - My Sister's Keeper

Really good story, could be a bit repetitive at times. The male characters had this annoying trait of of talking about women a bit weirdly but it’s easy to look past it. The main protagonist was very likeable and the multiple perspectives was done really well

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elias_b's review against another edition

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emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I've always found that there exists some form of beauty in tragedy—that books which deal with inevitable tragedies are life lessons to us all, in some way or the other.

However, "My Sister's Keeper" was a let-down. Let me explain why:

1. Shifting narration: First-person POVs do a great job of bringing out a character's innermost thoughts, but it becomes a problem when there are too many POVs. Anna, Kate, Jesse, Brian, Sara, Julia, and Campbell are all interesting characters in their own right, but the shifting POVs were jarring at times and completely unnecessary.

2. The subplots: The crux of the issue is Anna's decision to go ahead with the lawsuit, so that she will not have to donate her kidney. However, the more you read, the more this fades into the background. Instead, we see glimpses of Campbell and Julia's shared history together, Jesse's troubled life, and etc.

You could argue that these subplots exist to make the characters seem more human—to establish that not everything is black-or-white, but all they did was distract me from Anna's case.

3. The ending: Hardly anything works out in our favour in the real world, and no matter what the outcome was, I expected a lose-lose situation. However, the ending made me wonder what point the author was trying to make here.

Anna lives in the shadow of her sister, and she spends her whole life making sacrifices for Kate. If not, her mother is convincing her to give in and do "one more thing" for Kate. As I read, I felt as though Anna was never able to become her own person. From her conception to the end, she's this safety plan just in case something happens to Kate.

And, this is where I spoil the ending:

It was a massive disservice to Anna as well as us readers when she was declared braindead from a car accident. Which, by the way, is Campbell's second one—so the man suffers from seizures ever since the first accident. Above all, it broke my heart that, just as Anna had begun to envision a future for herself, it was just ripped from her.

So, because of this, Kate receives her kidney and miraculously survives. The family moves on. I can't put my finger on it, but this ending certainly feels rushed.

It disappoints me to rate this 3.0 stars, especially since I looked forward to having a morality debate in my mind. After completing the book, all I feel is pity for Anna and a greater love for Campbell.

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slaywithsteph's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

I knew I was gonna cry, and I did, and my heart is broken.

If you liked the movie, you’ll like this, too. The movie cut out a lot about the characters.

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annieb26's review against another edition

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emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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witchleaves's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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hannah_beth_charles's review against another edition

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hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I found myself skipping paragraphs because some of the metaphors were so boring and unnecessary that I found it was a waste of time. I also hated Picoult's writing style and the way she made the men's POVs full of vulgar language or shallow thoughts, like "boys will be boys".

I think that Anna's death was Jesse's punishment for starting fires and putting other's lives at risk. It's not fair for him to just be let off without punishment. The ending was quite surprising but and almost lazy. There's no way that Anna would have an unstrained relationship with her parents after she tried to sue them, and Kate's death would be blamed on Anna. Anna needed to die for the story to conclude. Kate becoming a ballet teacher is unrealistic and I know it was her dream, but she hadn't done ballet before, and ballet isn't a sport you can just do. It takes years of training.

I couldn't care less Campbell and Julia's relationship. They're both toxic and Julia is desperate to be different. Julias losing her virginity on a gravestone was just odd.

I hated that throughout the novel, Sara was trying to be redeemed as a good mother or at least trying her best in a complicated situation. She had Anna just to save Kate. She probably wouldn't have had Anna if Kate wasn't sick. What irked me most was at the end when she said that she would send her one child in a fire to save the other child and she was willing to risk losing them both. That is so selfish because Sara sacrificing their lives. That's not fair and is plain wrong. She is not put in any danger.

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