8. My Sister's Keeper

Picoult, Jodi. My Sister’s Keeper. New York: Washington Square Press, 2004. Print.

ANNOTATION: As a perfect donor match, Anna the only one who can give her sister Kate what she needs to survive cancer. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she is--but choosing to become her own person may tear her family apart and have dire consequences for the sister she loves.

JUSTIFICATION FOR REJECTION: My Sister’s Keeper is a compelling and thought-provoking book that keeps readers turning the pages. Issues of family, sibling rivalry, death and independence are all themes that young adults can identify with, but most of the story is from the adult and parent perspective; this is an important lens for young readers, but one that some--not most--will be able to resonate with. The setting is mainly at home or the hospital, places that teens may not be that excited about.

Picoult delivers an elegant writing style that is full of imagery and easy to follow, however the voice of thirteen year-old Anna sounds more like a thirty year-old Anna; in her speech she sounds like a teen, but not in narration. She is complex and interesting, but the story is so full of other voices that it is difficult to imagine the book as a young adult novel; it seems a much better fit for parents of teenagers. The central issues are love, choice and freedom, but the context is family--how decisions get made and who gets to make them. The multiple perspectives is a strength, as it allows for diversity of thought around the complex and debated topics such as of stem-cell research and parenting; it makes the reader think deeply about his or her own morals and what they believe is right.

The plot is dynamic with a few ending twists, but not all characters are believable--some are less developed than others, almost prescribed to be liked. They are not shallow, but almost too good to be true--not quite real enough.

I enjoyed reading My Sister’s Keeper, but am unable to recommend this book for a young adult award.

GENRE: Challenged/Coming of Age