Between the Lines (Between the Lines, #1) in Jodi Picoult Books Reading Group.

Apr 25, 2012 Teresa rated it liked it · review of another edition

My Rating - 3.5 stars - an enjoyable read.

I was intrigued when I first heard about Between the Lines, a collaboration between Jodi Picoult and her sixteen year old daughter, Samantha, aimed at a younger audience. Equally attractive was the idea of fictional characters coming to life, a theme which I loved in Cornelia Funke’s Inkheart trilogy and Jasper Fforde’s madcap Thursday Next series. I was also keen to see if this would be good enough to join the likes of Cornelia Funke, Sally Gardner and My Rating - 3.5 stars - an enjoyable read.

I was intrigued when I first heard about Between the Lines, a collaboration between Jodi Picoult and her sixteen year old daughter, Samantha, aimed at a younger audience. Equally attractive was the idea of fictional characters coming to life, a theme which I loved in Cornelia Funke’s Inkheart trilogy and Jasper Fforde’s madcap Thursday Next series. I was also keen to see if this would be good enough to join the likes of Cornelia Funke, Sally Gardner and Michelle Harrison and other great writers on my ever expanding TBR pile of future reads for my daughter.

This is quite a light-hearted read with touches of humour along the way. Fifteen year old Delilah is not a typical teenager and her efforts to fit in with her peers usually end up in disaster. Instead of dating in real life, she spends her time immersed in reading her favourite fairy tale, wishing and hoping that she could meet someone just like the fictional hero, Prince Oliver. Well, in this case, wishes do come true but if only the “happily ever after” was as easily attainable – the barrier between fiction and reality is thicker than paper and Delilah has the difficult task of convincing her mother that she isn’t certifiable when she stays cocooned in her room, talking to fictional characters.

Jodi Picoult’s trademark style of multiple narration is at play here with three separate narrative strands each in a different font, Delilah’s story, Oliver’s story and the actual text of the fairytale, Between the Lines. The pencil and silhouette illustrations are exquisite and really complement the whole notion of stories as living, breathing entities with characters climbing up the margins and objects made of actual words.

This is a clever, wholesome romance probably best suited for the pre-teen reader as older readers might prefer a bit more bite (not always of the vampire sort!) to their reading consumption. Not as dark as the Inkheart trilogy, it will appeal to fans of The Princess Bride and The Neverending Story.

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Jun 29, 2012 Stephanie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012, 2016

I really enjoyed this book! At first I was a little disappointed that it was written in Picolt's typically writing style. I was hoping that since it was her daughters idea it would have Samantha's own style to it, but that wasn't the case. However, the different POV's really worked for the story. I loved all of the characters and was drawn into the book from the very start. I do wish there was more of an epilogue so that we could know how everyone was doing a few years down the line.

Second Readi ...more

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Sep 03, 2012 Ramona rated it liked it

Between the Lines is an interesting concept for a book & I applaude Jodi for writing this book with her daughter & her ideas. Although this book was not one of my favorite books for entertaining “me,” I understand and appreciate the concept of the book being written for a younger generation and as an introduction to Picoult’s books to them. Very inventive ideas letting the imagination of “what if” run free. When reading a book, most of us visualize the characters in the story & often begin to fe ...more

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Jul 26, 2013 Melissa rated it liked it

Shelves: for-kaitkyn

Not your typical JP plot, daughter is lucky her mom put her name on it...probably wouldn't sell otherwise. Cute storyline, definitely a tween YA pick, I think Kaitlyn might like it. ...more

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Feb 26, 2012 Sheila rated it it was amazing

Shelves: five-stars, 2012

All I can think of when I read this book was a formula.

Toy Story meets The Never Ending Story meets The Indian In the Cupboard.

When you close a book are the characters still on the page in their original position? Or have they changed? Can you fall in love with the Prince and can he communicate with you?

Well that's what happened to Delilah in Between The Lines!

Loved it. Since the other author with Jodi Picoult is her own daughter and they wrote this book together (Samantha had the idea for the ...more

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