Handle with Care

by Jodi Picoult

[Leah]

Ever since she was born – and even before that – Willow O’Keefe has had many broken bones, due to the fact she has a rare disease called Osteogenisis Imperfecta (OI). Her parents Charlotte and Sean are devastated and as Willow grows older, the O’Keefe’s learn that having a child with such a terrible disease not only impacts on family life in itself but that the medical expenses are crippling. Salvation comes, though, when Charlotte learns she has a case for Wrongful Birth – that if she had known about Willow’s condition at 18 weeks she would have aborted her baby. That means, though, that Charlotte has to stand up in court and admit to the world that she wished her much loved daughter had never been born. It also means losing her best friend, Piper, as she was Charlotte’s obstetrician during her pregnany. Can a case like this ever have a right or wrong?

It was kind of by accident that I came upon Jodi Picoult’s books. My mum brought home two of them after a day out and after a quick glance at one of them I decided to give it a read. Hours later I had finished My Sister’s Keeper and I couldn’t stop crying. I thought it was a fantastic book and the twist at the end was such a shock that I actually didn’t believe it. I then heard about Jodi releasing a book that was going to send shock-waves through America called Nineteen Minutes, about a teen gunman opening fire at a school, made more shocking by the fact that prior to its release there was a school shooting in America. I thought it sounded like an incredibly interesting read and I loved that, too. Since then I’ve collected as many of Jodi’s books as I can and I’ve finally gotten around to reading my third Jodi novel.

One thing you can guarantee with a Jodi Picoult book is that the book is going to be controversial. With Handle With Care the controversial topic is, of course, abortion. Is it right to want to abort a child just because s/he has brittle bones? To stand up in court and declare to the world that, if you had known about the disease with enough time left, that you would have aborted your child? That is basically what Handle With Care does: it asks us to answer that question made more difficult by the fact that every single person has a differing opinion and there is, to be perfectly honest, no right or wrong answer. In my humble opinion I don’t agree with abortion. But I do think there are extenuating circumstances – if you learn your child will be severely disabled and unable to live at least a comfortable life then I can see it but, really, I believe every child deserves the chance to live life.

I could – and still can – see Charlotte’s point though and I personally believe that although Charlotte had to stand up in court and declare the fact that had she known about her daughter’s condition earlier she would have aborted her, I don’t think that was the case at all. I don’t think it was ever about having Willow aborted, it was more about trying to help Willow lead a better life. I don’t agree with what Charlotte did to give Willow the chance of having a better life but I could see from her perspective that, as a mother, she would do everything she could to make sure her daughter didn’t suffer. Of course, suing your best friend is never the answer and it definitely helps create a great conflict of interests. The thing that most helps Handle With Care is the way in which it’s narrated. We have several narrators in the book. Charlotte, I would say, is our main narrator but we also get the points of view of Sean, Charlotte’s husband and Willow’s father; Amelia, Willow’s older sister; Piper, Charlotte’s (ex)best friend and obstetrician, and Marin, Charlotte’s lawyer and they all think different things which helps to further the book.

At times, I hated Charlotte for what she was doing because we, the reader, could see the strain it was having upon her family. It was like a bomb had gone off in the center of their universe and they were all off balance trying to claw their way back. For the most part though I didn’t mind Charlotte. I felt I could never really like her properly because what she was doing, for me, was morally wrong but on the other hand I understood it. I felt great sympathy for Sean, Charlotte’s husband. I could see his frustrating mounting as Charlotte decided to go through with the lawsuit and I could also see just how heartbroken he was to see his and Charlotte’s marriage suffer culminating in him going over to the other side and even leaving his home for a time. One of the most complex characters of the entire book was Amelia, Willow’s older sister, she has a tough time dealing with everything particularly since she feels as if her parents aren’t even bothered about her any more and it was hard to see just how much Willow’s illness had also affected Amelia’s life. She faces some huge difficulties – and at times, she seemed so much more older than her 12 years – and I was so sad for her. I also found myself feeling huge sympathy for Piper, Charlotte’s best friend and obstetrician. I mean with friends like Charlotte, who would need enemies? What Charlotte does to Piper is so so wrong and could never be justified in a million years. The fact is that Charlotte’s lawsuit not only destroyed her own family, it also destroyed Piper’s. I can’t say I was a huge fan of Marin, Charlotte’s lawyer, I felt that I never really got to know her. She has her own subplot throughout the book which was very interesting, though.

The one character I have so far failed to mention is one of my favourite ever child characters. Heck, she’s probably one of my favourite characters period and that is young Willow. Despite having OI and despite having had numerous broken bones throughout her life, she is constantly upbeat and cheery. She doesn’t let her brittle bones get her down and to read that her mother wants to stand up in court and say that this beautiful girl shouldn’t have lived really was quite heartbreaking. For a six year old, Willow was very bright and it was clear to see that what was going on in her parents lives was affecting her badly and I just wanted to cuddle her (not tightly though!). The scenes in which Willow breaks her bones were quite frank and honest and they really made me wince.

Like most of Jodi Picoult’s books – or, the three that I’ve read – the ending was rather sad. Jodi Picoult somehow manages to chuck in surprising twists near the end/at the end of her books but, yet again, I didn’t see it coming at all. I didn’t think it was as sad as My Sister’s Keeper but it was definitely a shock. Jodi’s writing is as fantastic as always and she really manages to suck me in every time. I always wonder after finishing the previous one if liking Jodi’s book was a one off but so far I’ve been totally wrong. The only thing I wasn’t such a huge fan was the recipes sporadically through the book. I just skipped them so I could carry on with the story proper. However, I will certainly not be leaving the rest of Jodi’s books I have on my shelf for much longer, that’s for sure. I hugely recommend you pick up Handle With Care. Believe me, you will not regret it.