Charity's Reading Log

Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult - Another title (that's all I seem to have the time to read these days) for the Rival Readers Book Club, and yet another outstanding book by Picoult. I was more than a bit apprehensive at our group choosing this particular title. Picoult is a great writer, and I suggest her works to students all the time. However, this club is about reading things outside the traditional "school" box, so when they chose it, we had to acquiesce.

Picoult always seems to be able to take a current, edgy issue and weave it into a wonderfully compelling story that has you on the edge of your seat the entire time. This time the reading experience was no different. This book's issue: a child abused by a priest...but, as always, it's not nearly that simple when Picoult starts to examine it. Nathaniel's mother is a District Attorney and knows that the legal system will not do her son justice. He will have to testify and will undergo further trauma, possibly even worse than the abuse he's faced already. The strong woman she is vows not to make him undergo the process, so she takes fate into her own hands and murders the priest in cold blood...in open court...in front of the entire world. As characters enter the story, Picoult creates a cast of characters that are both incredibly real and vulnerable at the same time. The twists and turns of the book keep the reader guessing and, even at the end, you're not entirely certain that you know yourself.

I've recommended this title to several students and teachers alike after reading it myself. Now, I can't wait to get my hands on Ninteen Minutes, Picoult's newest title featuring a character from Perfect Match.