Book One: Handle With Care

Hello everyone, and welcome to the first book review on this page

I did originally post this review on my other blog last year but I loved it so much I wanted it to be the first book I reviewed on this page. Enjoy!

THIS BOOK HAS ALL OF THE HALLMARKS OF JODI PICOULT, in the sense that it is a very thought-provoking read, with a strong moral question at its heart. I have read several of her works now, and every single time, I find my judgement and moral integrity being questioned. My views on the subject matter are one way when reading the first page, and are in some way altered, if not totally changed, by the time I finish the book. This is one of those characteristics of Picoult that I have come to love, and is why I continue to be drawn in by her novels, and why I can’t stop reading them!

IT RAISES SEVERAL KEY QUESTIONS surrounding the topic of disability, particularly in relation to the other contentious subject of abortion.

In Handle with Care, Sean and Charlotte O’Keefe’s daughter Willow has osteogenesis imperfecta (OI), also known as brittle bone disease. This condition is life-limiting, and causes frequent bone breaks, which means high medical costs and a lot of time spent in hospitals. In order to try and make Willow’s life easier, they sue their obstetrician. However, doing so means admitting that if they had known about their daughter’s disability, they would have aborted her. There are quite a few interesting debates around this subject, and I have placed some of the larger moral questions below. (Hopefully these are worded in the right way, and that no offence is caused.)

If the parents of a disabled child had known about the disability during pregnancy, would they have chosen to abort the foetus? Similarly, if a disability is discovered early enough in a pregnancy, should that embryo be aborted to prevent the difficulties that the child will have to face if they are born?

For someone with a disability, is it better to live and have a low quality of life, or to be dead and not have to live in constant pain? If so, who should make that choice?

Do parents of disabled children ever regret that they have a child who has a disability? Do they wish that their child had been born “normal” instead? If they feel this way, does this mean they don’t love that child, or love them less? Perhaps it means they love them more, because they wish they could go through life without all of the difficulties they will face?

Without a doubt, this is one of the most fascinating and thought-invoking books I’ve read in the last few years, from one of the best authors of our time. Another really brilliant book, and one I couldn’t put down.

Have you read Handle With Care? What did you think of it?

What about any other books by Jodi Picoult? If so, which ones and what did you think?

Are there any books (by Picoult or otherwise) that you’ve been reading recently that you would recommend?

I would love to hear from you, either in the comments section down below or on my social media links in the sidebar. It would be lovely to know what you all think and to get some discussion going about some of the books we’ve all been into recently.

Until next time, keep reading, keep positive, and above all, keep believing!