Goodreads | Nineteen Minutes (Paperback) by Jodi Picoult

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Kate rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

01/03/08

Read in January, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I have read most of Jodi Picoult's books, and they are always entertaining and easy to read. However, this one was definitely not my favorite, and I often found it a bit formulaic and poorly executed. Maybe it's because I HAVE read so many of her books that I was looking for her signature "twist" at the ending (which an astute reader will guess at halfway through the book, if not earlier), and her characters seem to act in certain ways that are not fitting.

***Spoilers Follow***

...more I have read most of Jodi Picoult's books, and they are always entertaining and easy to read. However, this one was definitely not my favorite, and I often found it a bit formulaic and poorly executed. Maybe it's because I HAVE read so many of her books that I was looking for her signature "twist" at the ending (which an astute reader will guess at halfway through the book, if not earlier), and her characters seem to act in certain ways that are not fitting.

***Spoilers Follow***

************************************************************

SPOILERS BELOW

The book is centered around a high-school shooting, the culprit a teenage boy named Peter Houghton, who to my mind is not a very convincing villain. The reader is supposed to empathize with Peter from the time he's a baby - this supposed "monster" is shown as a tender, loving boy who gets picked on mercilessly at school. The point, really, is to show that even the most sensitive, nice child can be turned into a killer when he is bullied relentlessly. But I still never really saw Peter, as he is portrayed in the flashbacks, as the same kid who was purported to have killed ten of his classmates in a murderous rampage.

Another loose end that never seems to get tied up is Peter's questioning of his sexuality. In one chapter, Peter is going to a gay bar and a GLAAD meeting, thinking he likes men. He is sitting next to Josie, another main character, and thinking that although she's pretty, he feels nothing for her. Fast forward fifty pages, and he's sending Josie a lovesick email about how much he wants to be a "couple" with her. The point of this, ostensibly, is to show that because the bullies tormented Peter with cries of "homo", that caused him to even question his own sexuality. But the email to Josie just seemed to be a convenient, and very out-of-character, move to tie plot points together.

The most baffling of all, and the hardest to accept, is the infamous Picoult plot twist which is set up through the whole book, via a "second gun" with only a partial fingerprint, that seems to have been fired but nobody can find the bullet, and it's lying on the floor in the room with Josie, her dead boyfriend, and the shooter. Glimpses of a quasi-abusive relationship between Josie and her jock boyfriend surface, and then the bombshell - JOSIE shot the boyfriend! And THEN Peter shot him too! Despite the fact that Josie loved him. Or hated him. Despite the fact that Josie has shown no inclination toward homicide, and happens to be standing face-to-face with the boy who has just slaughtered all of her friends. Does this seem believable to anyone? Again, it's ostensibly because Josie doesn't see another way out of this relationship - the jock boyfriend has threatened to kill himself if she ever leaves him. But shooting him in the gut? That's a bit overwrought and hard to swallow.

I write this review as a loyal fan of Jodi Picoult's work, and an ardent fan of books like "The Pact" and "My Sister's Keeper". I just wish Picoult would step out of the box a little bit and shake things up - just like moviegoers are starting to tire of M. Night Shyamalan's plot twists and wacked-out endings, so I'm beginning to be unsurprised and underwhelmed by Picoult's work....less

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Wormie rated it:

(review of isbn 0340933747)

05/20/07

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in May, 2007

recommends it for: someone desperate for anything to read

Nineteen Minutes is Jodi Picoult’s most recent novel, and I predict it will become her best seller to date. It focuses on the events leading up to and following a high school shooting.

Peter Houghton, picked on by school mates from the first day of kindergarten, enters Sterling High, and in nineteen minutes kills ten and wounds another nineteen students.

In typical fashion, Picoult shapes her story by providing various perspectives. We are able to put the story together from Peter’...more Nineteen Minutes is Jodi Picoult’s most recent novel, and I predict it will become her best seller to date. It focuses on the events leading up to and following a high school shooting.

Peter Houghton, picked on by school mates from the first day of kindergarten, enters Sterling High, and in nineteen minutes kills ten and wounds another nineteen students.

In typical fashion, Picoult shapes her story by providing various perspectives. We are able to put the story together from Peter’s perspective as well as that of his parents, Judge Alex Cormier, Cormier’s daughter Josie – a student in the school on that day, Patrick – a detective on the case, Jordan – Peter’s attorney. We are able to see all the characters as “human” – sympathetic but faulted.

Picoult has always been a great story-teller, and in this novel, she is able to take a ripped from the headlines topic, and create a fictional story that makes the reader think. Justice is served in the novel, but there is a surprise ending and some twists and turns to keep the reader turning pages.

With that said, my first reaction upon finishing the novel was, “that’ll make a great movie”. I then realized how sad that reaction was.

Nineteen Minutes doesn’t contain the artistic writing that Picoult’s earlier novels did. A few years ago, when I discovered Jodi Picoult’s books, I considered myself a big fan. I loved her novels and anxiously awaited the publishing of the next. I thought her writing was truly gifted! She had a way of telling a story by not telling a story. She wove together threads of personality and insight to create beautiful rich tapestries that were character studies, and by introducing me to a new character I learned something of value.

In Nineteen Minutes, Picoult told a story – a good one. But the nuance and magic of her earlier writing is gone. While I enjoyed the novel, there was nothing there that will stay with me. I was like watching a good made for TV movie – well done, but so what?

So, perhaps my review of this book isn’t fair. I give it three stars, because it is a well-written story. It will be a huge commercial success, and it will be on the best-seller lists. While it may further establish Picoult as a best selling contemporary novelist, it also may mark the end of my Picoult fan-club membership.

Ms. Picoult, we all have to pay the mortgage, and I understand. You give the people what they want, and you get financial rewards. I hope that in between these best selling works, you will still exercise that wonderful craft that you have been blessed with. I hope that your new found audience (who WILL buy anything with you name on it) will read some of your earlier novels and see the beauty and intricacies of your writing. I hope that someday soon you will be able to have commercial success by returning to your real gift – the “art” of writing.
...less

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Lara rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

06/17/08

Read in June, 2008

Believe it or not, I have never actually read one of Jodi Piccoult's books before. I'm not really sure why, but I haven't.

This particular book has really stayed with me as I finished it, and I think Piccoult makes a few very important points/observations.

1. Sometimes the perpetrator of a heinous crime is the biggest victim of them all. Reading the things that Peter went through sometimes brought me to tears. I have never understood how people can treat others so badly, and the behav...more

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Sammy rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

06/12/07

bookshelves: the-best

Read in May, 2007

This book is a hard book to put down because the entire time you're seeking answers. Why? What actually happened? What made it progress to this? Things like that. Things that people asked after Columbine, most recently after Virginia Tech, and after all the other school shootings. Once again Jodi Picoult tackles a sensitive and controversial issue, in an amazingly strong and dignified manner that doesn't have you choosing sides.

She did it to the reader in My Sister's Keeper, where the...more

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Michelle rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

01/23/08

Read in September, 2007

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I was a Jodi Picoult virgin up until I read this book, so I was quite curious and excited to read this much revered authors book. I have to say though, it left me disappointed. Right from the start I felt it lacking...it was, to me, boring and long-winded. Constant thoughts running through my head resembled those of 'what is the fuss about Jodi Picoult?'.

Although the entertainment value left me hungry, I did gain some positives from the book. That was when I wasnt becoming a nuerotic p...more

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Lori rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

09/23/08

Read in August, 2008

recommended to Lori by: Kendra Keyes
recommends it for: Anyone who know the meaning of friendship

Nineteen Minutes,by Jodi Picoult, This book is about a town with many problems under its immaculate reputation. When a school shooting unveils a moutain of lies and dark secrets blame is tossed around not only from the shooter himself, but also from many of the victims. Sides are choosen and bonds are broken, new alliances made and old alliances upheld, the town is torn apart. It is a story of how everyone has skeletons in their closet. And, faith, though sometimes the hardest thing to co...more Nineteen Minutes,by Jodi Picoult, This book is about a town with many problems under its immaculate reputation. When a school shooting unveils a moutain of lies and dark secrets blame is tossed around not only from the shooter himself, but also from many of the victims. Sides are choosen and bonds are broken, new alliances made and old alliances upheld, the town is torn apart. It is a story of how everyone has skeletons in their closet. And, faith, though sometimes the hardest thing to come by, can be found in places you never expected. In the end, telling the truth, even when it's hard is all that really matters. "In nineteen minutes you can change the course of someone's life..." Jodi Picoult.

9/23/08
In this book there are many main characters all who shaped and formed this story into a visionary masterpiece. Without each one's description of their life and part in the story, it could not be the book it turned out to be. Among the many characters though, Josie Corimer seems to be the most important. Josie's life, and personality is torn in two. Strait A student, ever sympathizing confidante to friends who would trade you in a heartbeat, loving and wonderful girlfriend with a boy who can't see who she really is. Then the darker side, one that needs to be shown. How cruel popularity truly is, your "friends" whispering about how you were seen next to a freak, a mother who belives her daughter is in the right crowd and can't spare a minute from her job to spend with her. A strong exterior is no longer holding the crumbling interior. A beautiful face cannot account for a broken soul. The need to go to the one true friend who could understand is stubbed out, because her reputation is at stake. The daughter of a judge, everything is reflected. From the long brunette hair that is combed to prefection every morning, to the flat stomach over which lies a freshly pressed Abercrombie t-shirt, even the biology book which lies open on the edge of the kitchen counter, the binding worn from so much use. What no one understands is that it is all fake. There is someone, screaming, clawing to get out. To tell you who she really is, tell you exactly what you've missed and that you may not like her near as much as you did. The small , white, sleeping pills teasing, dancing in front of her eyes. It could all end my problems, the ceasless cycle of thoughts running like a movie reel in her head. It all comes to light with a dark secret that can grab you like a monster in the dark. ...less

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Cindy rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

07/11/08

bookshelves: cheezits-bookclub

Read in July, 2008

recommended to Cindy by: Susan
recommends it for: Moms or Readers who like to think

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Well, this book took me all of a week from beginning to end. For the most part, I enjoyed it. There were some parts that started to drag -- you know those parts -- where you sort of "skim over" the text just looking for important words in case you need to know something in the future. But, those were VERY few and far between mainly because Jodi moved from character to character so easily.

As far as the characters go, I found it very difficult to identify ...more WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Well, this book took me all of a week from beginning to end. For the most part, I enjoyed it. There were some parts that started to drag -- you know those parts -- where you sort of "skim over" the text just looking for important words in case you need to know something in the future. But, those were VERY few and far between mainly because Jodi moved from character to character so easily.

As far as the characters go, I found it very difficult to identify with Peter. I can't imagine school life being SO BAD that you feel that the only way out is to grab a couple pistols and shotguns and start taking out the assholes in school. I would just say -- "this is so wrong, I need help." And Josie, the female lead in the book...I thought she was a crybaby for the longest time. Oh, so pretty, popular, likable, all she did was bitch that her mom didn't understand her, didn't know her at all, her boyfriend was hot but was an asshole for the most part in my humble opinion. That part where they have sex and he slams his hand over her mouth to keep her from objecting -- hell no. Had that been me, he would have been short a penis after that!

Peter's family is one piece of work, too. I, as a parent, cannot comprehend the loss of a child. However, if you do lose a child, you do not alienate one because of the loss of another. It is NOT okay to compare the living to the dead. You can never live up to the dead -- and it's not healthy to idolize the dead. Dad decided that it would be a good idea to get Peter into hunting. Mom is so smothering that it made ME uncomfortable. However, as a parent, you DO snoop on your children if you think they are acting strange. You DO ask questions, you DO check up on what they are watching, who they are with, and what they are doing on the computer. If you can't figure the computer out, or anything else for that matter, you find someone who can. Mom had no idea that he was planning anything -- and he had the makings of a BOMB in his closet! Dad was, for the most part, oblivious to Peter at all. He had his favorite and his favorite died tragically. THAT is probably the one thing that garnered any sympathy at all from me for Peter. The fact that the person that he knows his parents "loved more" was a major bully to him -- his big brother. The person that was supposed to protect him no matter what. The person who he looked up to called him "homo" and "fag" all the time. The one person who he thought would be there for him -- shit on him constantly. The person he was constantly compared to turned out to be a drug addict and was lost forever in tragedy -- like some martyr.

There were parts of the book that steered you in the direction of pity for Peter. I could NOT do that. I just couldn't. I've been bullied, picked on -- who hasn't? I was BY NO MEANS, in any way, shape, or form a part of a "popular" crowd. I didn't have the looks, the money, or the family to be popular. So, I was unpopular and picked on. But there were kids who were picked on in my grade/high school who had it REALLY BAD. If it were today, I could totally see some of those kids bringing sawed off shotguns to school! Seriously. However, the kid who was picked on most is now an extremely well paid archaeologist who heads up the Archeology Department at some college out in California. All the popular kids have are pictures of them in their cheerleading and football uniforms and memories. Who really had the last laugh? That kid in my school could have been Peter, but Peter chose the wrong way out. He took the life of someone else's child to make his better. Or so he thought it would be better.

However, saying all of this makes for a good book. Jodi Picoult's character development is fabulous, and that's an understatement. She is one helluva writer. She evokes emotions that you are forced to face so that you can continue reading -- you HAVE to continue reading, you have no choice. She throws questions out there that make you think -- how would I do that? What would I say? What would I do? Why would anyone think that doing this is completely okay?

To me, the ending was more than predictable, but that's just me. So, I say again, I liked this book. I usually read books that are strictly brain-candy for me. Books where I can just read and not really think. This was a book that was a thinker but that I read and enjoyed -- but I wouldn't re-read it. It left me unsettled -- but it made me give my boys A LOT MORE HUGS. Good, tight-squeeze hugs! Because you never know what's going to happen in the future, do you?

...less

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Suzann rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496736)

06/07/08

bookshelves: general-fiction

Read in June, 2008

This novel caught my attention because the story was so like the events of the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado back in 1999. One difference is that the perpetrator in this novel is a single boy, not two, and he lives to go to trial rather than committing suicide as did the boys in the Columbine incident.
The book begins just after the shootings at fictional Sterling High, and then loops backwards in time, seventeen years, to the births of two of the main characters, Peter and Jo...more

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Jann rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

08/03/08

Read in August, 2008

This was the first Jodi Picoult novel I've picked up, despite having her recommended by several of my friends for various novels. I have to admit the plot summary was intriguing enough to pique my interest.

I grew up in a world where school shootings hadn't happened yet. Columbine happened when I was a senior in high school, just a couple months short of graduation. I remember the shift in collective conciousness at the time, how that one terrible event affected us all. After all, it cou...more This was the first Jodi Picoult novel I've picked up, despite having her recommended by several of my friends for various novels. I have to admit the plot summary was intriguing enough to pique my interest.

I grew up in a world where school shootings hadn't happened yet. Columbine happened when I was a senior in high school, just a couple months short of graduation. I remember the shift in collective conciousness at the time, how that one terrible event affected us all. After all, it could've been any high school in America, right? Our graduation rehearsal was later cancelled based on copycat threats received.

This story was a different insight into the situation. The way she follows the police detective, the judge, the accused, and one victim is in-depth and the backstory provided gives, if not a total method, at least some peek into the harsh experiences of high school students at varying social levels. I found the account of the accused boy's mother especially sad and touching. It's easy to read this and feel compassion for the mothers that have actually been faced with this situation. It's another thing to wonder if I would feel that way myself, if my child were involved in something so horrific. After Columbine, I don't remember giving the shooters' families much thought. I was saddened for the innocent victims and terrified for myself to think something like that was even possible.

I liked this book because it made me stop and think about many things I haven't pondered in a long time. There is an element of fear and uncertainty to being a parent--at some point, you aren't responsible for your child's action and you have no idea what they will become. In many ways, you just hold your breath and hope for the best. Only in a few rare instances do things go south in the manner they have for these fictional parents.

On the whole, having the "action" upfront was a relief. Very few books that I've read lately are that way. Also, I was expecting way more gore. It was graphic to the point necessary, but it didn't make me ill. The choppy third person omniscient narrative style worked well for me, too. It kept things moving, even during a story from the past that was meant to illustrate 'how they got here'. The characters were diverse and interesting, especially Josie. I wasn't quite as interested by Peter as I thought I might be (I knew going in there would be at least something in here about the shooter), but maybe only because so many other deep characters fleshed out the story.

It wasn't the easiest to read, just because of the thought-provoking content. But it was worth it, and will definitely make you wonder about how such significant changes can be wrought in such a short period of time. ...less

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Lindsey added it (review of isbn 0743496736)

05/05/08

Read in April, 2008

When I first started to read <Nineteen Minutes> by Jodie Picoult I was bored with it. This books main idea and point to try to get across to people is the fact that we need to pay attention to bullying and how it truly affects teenagers whether we see it or not. The book starts out really slow and gives you absolutely no insight on exactly what the book is about, but once you get passed the first one hundred pages it is a really phenomenal book. This book really captures how someone might ...more When I first started to read <Nineteen Minutes> by Jodie Picoult I was bored with it. This books main idea and point to try to get across to people is the fact that we need to pay attention to bullying and how it truly affects teenagers whether we see it or not. The book starts out really slow and gives you absolutely no insight on exactly what the book is about, but once you get passed the first one hundred pages it is a really phenomenal book. This book really captures how someone might feel if they were being constantly bullied, harassed, and humiliated throughout their high school career. Picoult really made me feel like I was apart of how the victim's families felt, how Peter felt, and how Josie felt. One of the best quotes in this book was the very first paragraph of the book. “In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn, color your hair, watch a third of a hockey game. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist; you can fold laundry for a family of five.... In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world, or you can just jump off it. In nineteen minutes, you can get revenge” (pg 1) That last sentence in the quote is a major part throughout the book just because of the fact that Peter gets his revenge by making the video game and being the shooter. Josie also gets her revenge toward Matt because she also shot him instead of shooting Peter like Matt wanted her to. Picoult brought in so many different sides and different feelings throughout each of the chapters. There were surprises throughout the book that just made the book become even better than before. This book should be read by so many or all teenagers in high school because I can pretty much guarantee that everyone is guilty in some way or another of bullying someone whether it was on purpose, with a group, or just joking around.

I think that something like what Picoult wrote about could happen to every high school if there was someone that really wanted to do it. It may not be to the extent of what Picoult wrote about but you really never know. I mean look at Columbine and Virginia Tech shootings. I typed in high school shooting to see some of the names of the high schools and there are so many there. There are major ones on that list but there are so many small ones that no one really hears about but they are still important. They are important to the families of the victims and to the victims but aren't on the news. I really believe that this book was based off of Columbine. There is so much bullying in the schools and it always ends with violence whether it is a fight or to the extreme, a school shooting. When Peter tried to tell one of the faculty members what was going on they really didn't help. They told him to not worry about it and they never paid any attention to the fact that it was happening and no one was helping Peter out.

Picoult did a really fantastic job with how she wrote this book and what kind of details she added to make a reader never want to put the book down. Picoult has a way of capturing life through her books and tragedies that really could happen or have happened in the past. She wants to raise the awareness of some horrible instances and things that could really happen. She did that not only in this book but also in the other books that she has written. She has made you get interested into the book and never wanting to set her books down....less

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Morgan rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

02/23/08

Read in February, 2008

recommends it for: parents

I have to say that I read this with pretty low hopes, having just finished My Sister's Keeper, and being pretty angry (well, maybe angry is too strong a word) with the ending. I have to say that I enjoyed this one much more, although I think most of that comes from me being a parent and appreciating some sort of the "eye-opening" that parents need sometimes to fully appreciate and shepherd the children in their care.

This book definitely affords that, as most it deals with parent...more I have to say that I read this with pretty low hopes, having just finished My Sister's Keeper, and being pretty angry (well, maybe angry is too strong a word) with the ending. I have to say that I enjoyed this one much more, although I think most of that comes from me being a parent and appreciating some sort of the "eye-opening" that parents need sometimes to fully appreciate and shepherd the children in their care.

This book definitely affords that, as most it deals with parents caught within a very tragic situation. Although one could definitely argue that parts of the book were oversimplified and trite (seriously, is every jock that bad? And is every computer geek that maligned?), the parental relationships were very nicely explored, and those characters were fleshed out very well. This is what kept me reading the book, and what kept me enjoying it until the very last page. It certainly wasn't the suspense, as the "twist ending" was very foreseeable (although, I'm sure this is what the author intended, as I am not usually one of those people who figures everything out within the first 50 pages. In reading, as in talking and running, I am quite slow).

In the end, it was very readable, I read it very quickly, and was left with memorable characters and a somewhat satisfied feeling.

And I got a nice moment with my daughter. I read the book today and then took her out for my lunch. My daughter is 8, but an old 8. She has a very mature understanding of many things that I frequently wonder about the origins of. It certainly doesn't come from me, who of course gets her life and parenting lessons from the cheap new paperback shelf at Barnes and Noble. Anyway, we were waiting on our salads at the restaurant, and my daughter is telling me something about the Jonas Brothers. And I, having just spent the last 4 hours of my life reading this book, want to talk to her about deep issues. "Gabby," I ask (and I should note, she immediately picks up that I want to talk about "deep things" and gets the look on her face I see when I am getting ready to do something really embarassing like sing or dance or talk about the oldest Jonas Brother, who all her friends find to be disgusting), "no one bullies you do they?" Gabby takes a long sip of water, and says, "Why would they?" I tell her that kids are cruel, sometimes it happens, etc, etc. She stops me midsentence and reminds me, "Um, I'm on the student council mom, and we have strict rules about that kind of thing. It doesn't happen on my yard." I imagine her standing down some bully, possibly wearing a sheriff's badge and writing a citation, and almost laugh, but then I see the look on her face, and I stop. I want to freeze her, I want to keep her this age forever. I want her to stop me and tell me I have nothing to worry about, that the characters in the book are nothing like her and her friends. I want her to remember this moment; I want her to help me to remember it. But, it of course ends, and we are brought our salads, and my daughter spends the next 10 minutes trying to discern every ingredient in the vinaigrette. Nothing in my life is tied up all nice like in a Jodi Picoult novel, a moving little story topped with the perfect words, the perfect ending note before heading into the next point of view. I am quite happy with that, I suppose. ...less

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alyssa rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

10/01/08

bookshelves: q1-2008

Read in September, 2008

This book is about a school shooting that took place one morning. The shooter shot the people that made fun of him.
It talks about Peter's life as a child. How he got picked on and he had this one friend that would stand up for him. Untill one day she became popular and it started going downhill after that.

10/01/08
text to self: This reminds me of a cpuple of years ago when I was faced with a gun in my face. It scared me to death but I could not move. He said that he was going to kill me i...more

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Celia rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

06/25/08

recommended to Celia by: bookclub
recommends it for: People who love Jodi Picoult

Is there a shelf for a book I have to stop reading because I can't stand something about it? In this case, that the writer is a machine that swallows magazines whole and spews out a topic of the month.

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Tina added it (review of isbn 0340935278)

09/09/08

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mo added it (review of isbn 0743496728)

09/16/08

"In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn, color your hair, watch a third of a hockey game. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist; you can fold laundry for a family of five....In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world, or you can just jump off it. In nineteen minutes, you can get revenge.
Sterling is a small, ordinary New Hampshire town where nothing ever happens -- until the day its complacency is shattered by a shocking act of violence. In th...more

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Nola rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

05/16/08

bookshelves: fiction---drama

Read in May, 2008

recommended to Nola by: Dana Harlos
recommends it for: Parents, bullies, the bullied

The last Jodi Picoult book I read made me question my decisions as a mother. This one affirmed several decisions that I have already made. In Nineteen Minutes, the world can shift slightly, or it can tilt off its hinges. And Picoult is skilled at the tilting.

The premise of the novel is a Columbine-type school shooting, a bullied young man wrecking vengeance not only on those who were cruel to him, but also on those who were not. But with deft skill, the author steers us beyond surface-leve...more The last Jodi Picoult book I read made me question my decisions as a mother. This one affirmed several decisions that I have already made. In Nineteen Minutes, the world can shift slightly, or it can tilt off its hinges. And Picoult is skilled at the tilting.

The premise of the novel is a Columbine-type school shooting, a bullied young man wrecking vengeance not only on those who were cruel to him, but also on those who were not. But with deft skill, the author steers us beyond surface-level judgements and into the issues at heart, forcing the reader to confront just what could make someone snap.

In Peter’s case, the snapping was the result of bullying that began in his first day of kindergarten, and continued every day for twelve years. But Picoult doesn’t just give him an easy out. Instead, she weaves into the story the history of Peter’s life, the times when his third grade teacher told him to fight back, when his parents told him to stand up for himself and be more like his popular older brother. Even more at the heart of the matter, however, is Peter’s best friend, a girl who stood up beside him for seven years before defecting to the popular crowd.

And so the story doesn’t just belong to Peter, but also to Josie, a girl walking the tightrope of popularity, a girl who feels as though she is donning a superficial mask on a daily basis. At a time when she should be trying to figure out who she is, she seems to know only who she is not. Her happiness exists at a superficial level, and thus is very fragile.

I think the scariest part of the novel, to me, was the fact that I (like many) grew up under the thumb of bullies, and so could relate to Peter. On the one hand, because I moved practically every year, I never had the same people attacking me; on the other hand, I was always “the new kid,” and so the initial bullying was virtually inevitable. As I read, I caught myself hoping several times that Peter would not wind up in jail – and then I had to do a mental course correction. It seems to me that many people think of bullying as a “building experience”, the whole “that which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” mantra. A mantra I, personally, feel is a load of garbage. I think that, most of the time, that which doesn’t kill you beats the living daylights out of you until you are a crumpled heap on the ground. But I digress…

This is the second novel by Picoult that I have read, and she again displays a very vivid and realistic writing style that draws the reader in (which is why I was up until three in the morning last night, despite having four kids to wake me up early). The only problem I have was the temporal reconstruction, similar to that in My Sister’s Keeper; that is, the story jumps around in time a lot. To be fair, it is a chapter-by-chapter jump, and the two stories – one from the day of the shooting forward, one from the infancy (and pre-infancy?) of Josie – move forward on separate chronological paths. Once you realize what is happening, it becomes easier. But I have a problem with anything that breaks the flow of the story, and the jumps in time certainly do that. (I should confess that I assumed the chapter headings were the normal, mundane ‘Chapter 1,’ ‘Chapter 2’ ones, which they are not.)

And so, again, the author has made me think, forced me to reconsider previously obvious stances and to challenge my beliefs. I love the comparison of the two mothers she provides, again challenging the norm. I can definitely say that the several increments of nineteen minutes spent reading this book shifted my perspective and thus, in some small way, changed my life.
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KJ rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496736)

05/10/08

Read in May, 2008

I had somehow completely missed Jodi Picoult. Then a friend brought her up in conversation one day, and suddenly I started seeing her everywhere. So naturally I had to pick one up. From reading reviews and back covers, my impression is that she tends to write books that take big social issues and then narrow her focus into on how they affect individual people on a small scale. Nineteen Minute is no exception -- the social issue is school violence and the people are the victims, and perpetrator, ...more I had somehow completely missed Jodi Picoult. Then a friend brought her up in conversation one day, and suddenly I started seeing her everywhere. So naturally I had to pick one up. From reading reviews and back covers, my impression is that she tends to write books that take big social issues and then narrow her focus into on how they affect individual people on a small scale. Nineteen Minute is no exception -- the social issue is school violence and the people are the victims, and perpetrator, of a high-school shooting incident. One thing I appreciated about this book is that it didn't pull any punches, and rarely took the easy way out (with one glaring exception, toward the very end, and though it seemed true to the character it also felt like a cop-out). The story is told through a multitude of viewpoints, including those of the shooter and both of his parents, and though sometimes I find that stories with a thousand narrators lack focus, in this case it served the story well, because we're forced to hear the voices of characters we wouldn't normally want to empathize with. The story is also told in varying timelines, another device I found effective. Maybe that means I'm falling for a lot of writerly tricks, but I don't mind writerly tricks when they work with the storytelling.

My only real complaint with this story was that Picoult brought in two characters from other books. I didn't mind that in and of itself, but she dropped asides about those characters' backstories and then never expanded on them. I found this particularly annoying because of the way the story moved back in time -- when the tidbits first came up, I assumed they'd be explained in the historic timelines, but they never were. It bothers me when writers assume that every reader has read all of their work. It's one thing when a book is a direct sequel, but that clearly wasn't the case here.

A minor quibble, though. I found this book to be quite un-putdownable, and I will certainly check out more of Picoult's many works. In fact, I have two in my stack already....less

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Amanda rated it:

(review of isbn 0743496728)

04/17/08

Read in March, 2008

Jodi Picoult's Nineteen Minutes is an absolutely must-read. This book starts out really slowly but as you move into the middle of the book you become sucked in. When i started reading this book I didn't know what i was getting into. The abuse that Peter Houghton faces causes him to go on a killing spree killing anyone that he looks at.
Nineteen minutes is the amount of time that it takes for him to kill 10 people and wound many others. It started out with him on the bus for the first t...more

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