From the Bookshelf of Jodi Picoult Books Reading Group.…

The Storyteller

Jodi Picoult

Start date: March 1, 2013

Finish date: March 30, 2013

Discussion: Books Under Discussion

Discussion leader: Rachael

Why we're reading this: Jodi Picoult's newest books comes out Febuary 26th, 2013. I would love to hear your opinions as we discus…more
[close] Jodi Picoult's newest books comes out Febuary 26th, 2013. I would love to hear your opinions as we discuss the novel.

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What Members Thought

Jan 19, 2013 Sue Seligman rated it it was amazing

I just finished this book and all I can say is wow! This is certainly one of my top favorite books of all time, right up there with To Kill a Mockingbird, Sarah's Key, Jerusalem Maiden, The Help, etc. I had been looking forward to reading this book since Jodi Picoult had posted the first excerpt on her website last year. I have always been huge fan of Holocaust literature, memoirs and historical fiction alike, even more so after marrying the son of survivors. This latest Picoult book did not dis I just finished this book and all I can say is wow! This is certainly one of my top favorite books of all time, right up there with To Kill a Mockingbird, Sarah's Key, Jerusalem Maiden, The Help, etc. I had been looking forward to reading this book since Jodi Picoult had posted the first excerpt on her website last year. I have always been huge fan of Holocaust literature, memoirs and historical fiction alike, even more so after marrying the son of survivors. This latest Picoult book did not disappoint.
The theme of the books is forgiveness, and whether a person who has perpetrated extreme evil has the right to expect to be forgiven if he has later turned his life around and contributed to society. The protagonist, Sage Singer, a young baker, is a troubled woman who lives in a world of isolation, coming to grips with the death of her mother, a disfiguring scar, and her dependence on an affair with a married man. Little by little we learn that she has withdrawn as much as she can from interaction with others, so afraid that no one would see past the scar, and feeling that she is not worthy of friendship or love because of her past. She works at night in a bakery, where her talent for creating delicious pastries is appreciated by her best friend who owns the shop and the people who patronize and work there. She visits a grief support group to help her deal with her mother's death and it is there she meets a 95 year old man with whom she develops an unusual friendship. Soon he asks her a very strange favor...he wants her to help him die because, although he has lived an upstanding life for more than fifty years (the local high school German teacher, coach, respected citizen), he had been guilty of such evil in his past that he does not want to live anymore. When he confesses to Sage that he had been a Nazi officer, she is taken aback, since her grandmother is a survivor of that terrible time in history. How she deals with the situation sets the stage for an engrossing and absorbing novel, which takes many surprising turns along the way to its surprising conclusion.
Jodi Picoult has a talent for getting into the heads and souls of ther characters. She usses different font for the interweaving chapters and viewpoints of each individual. This novel is told, in turn, by Sage, Josef, Minka (Sage's grandmother), Leo (the Nazi hunter), and the parallel fairy tale which had helped Minka' survive unimaginable horrors. At times the book is very difficult to read due to the subject matter, but that is the indicator of how good Jodi is at her craft. The reader is transported to a horrible and unimaginable time in history; the sights and smells are depicted in such a way that the reader can visualize and think that he or she is actually in prewar Germany or Auschwitz or some small village a hundred years ago. The emotional component of this book is so real and so close to the surface. At times I cried, and sometimes I actually gasped out loud at the surprising events which I did not see coming. I knew there would be a twist, a surprising end, and I did amaze myself by figuring out what would happen shortly before I finished the book, but that did not diminish my fascination in the least. It has been awhile since I have been so engrossed by any novel, and I salute Jodi Picoult for her intense research and thought which obviously went into writing this novel. Bravo to her, and definitely read this book! ...more

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Nov 30, 2013 Jenn rated it liked it

I had 18 pages left and was going to go to sleep. However, sleep is overrated and I decided to finish. There was something severely lacking from this recent Picoult book. It was, once again, a difficult subject. Picoult tackled it well, drew me in, but it lacked something. Where was that usual jaw-dropping twist? Where was that turn if events that made me gasp out loud? Missing, dammit!

I recall reading a few years ago a book on the Armenian genocide. I'd compare the two, only the other book was ...more

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Mar 23, 2013 Melissa rated it really liked it

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

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Mar 07, 2013 Marla rated it really liked it

Really enjoyed this one. Brigid, you will of course hate it so don't bother. ...more

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Nov 28, 2013 Teresa rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2013

I love to read Jodi Picoult. A different way to tell the Holocaust story using a fairy tale. This is a great story of loss, survival, and forgiveness!

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Apr 15, 2013 Britta rated it it was amazing

"However, no child really chooses his religion; it is just the luck of the draw which blanket of beliefs you are wrapped in."

"Sometimes all it takes to become human again is someone who can see you that way, no matter what you present on the surface." ...more

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Mar 11, 2013 Kerry rated it it was amazing

Shelves: highly-recommended

I absolutely loved this book and would recommend it to everyone-especial anyone who thinks they have read enough Jodi Picoult as this book is unlike any if her other books. Haunting. Lyrical, uplifting, it is tremendous.

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Dec 29, 2012 Jola rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I had a hard time listening to the stories about the war & concentration camps. My father has never told us the stories because he wanted us to have a better life. Well written, but couldn't finish. ...more

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