Jodi Picoult Books Reading Group. discussion
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Group Reading #1: Keeping Faith
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Ashley
(last edited Aug 25, 2016 01:45PM)
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Nov 14, 2007 09:08AM

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Hey Ash,
Bummer is I've already read it, but I could always reread it again! :)
Bummer is I've already read it, but I could always reread it again! :)








I am looking forward to reading this on my plane flight tomorrow!
I do feel better, thanks Kathy!


Even when I wasn't enjoying this, I still couldn't put it down.






Was Keeping Faith your least favorite or 19 Minutes? Did you read 10th Circle? Hate to jump back on that topic (the I-Hate-The-Tenth-Circle) topic, but just curious if you dislike KF more. So far, 10th is still my least favorite.
I am up to the court proceedings in KF. It's gotten a little bit dull for me...I even started skipping around. Shhhhh!












All of the main characters were compelling, but I was especially drawn to Ian Fletcher, whose transformation from the beginning of the novel to the end unfurled so beautifully. At first, you could not help but hate this atheist preacher with his pomposity and narrow-mindedness. Ugh. But then you discover Ian's twin brother Michael, which reveals a completely different side of him and partly explains the distant person he has become. I think I fell in love with Ian just when Mariah did—when she and Faith saw him interact so sweetly with Michael. Afterwards, when Mariah shows him just a little care and concern, she cracks his brittle exterior, and we discover this loving soul underneath. I don’t think I will ever forget the scene of Ian visiting Michael early in the morning, when he receives that incredible gift. I am tearing up again just thinking about it!
Totally by accident, I happened to read Keeping Faith right before the release of Change of Heart, and I was delighted to discover that Ian Fletcher was 'resurrected' in that novel. To me, Change of Heart was worth reading just to learn about how Ian, Mariah and Faith were faring since I last left them. Although I liked Keeping faith better than Change of Heart, I found both books captivating. As is the case in all of Picoult's stories, her meticulous research and character development make the story quite compelling. (And in Change of Heart, it was so refreshing to see Maggie, who is bright and funny but also overweight and insecure, land a handsome, sensitive guy. Hooray!)
Was anyone else moved by Ian Fletcher? I'd love to hear some other comments about him.

I too, am a big Jodi Picoult fan... and have not found a book of hers that I have not totally embraced! Keeping Faith is no exception!!! What a great book... I just finished it today, and found it interesting and exciting from cover to cover. Other posters have said it was boring in spots... what spots??
The characters were easy to get to know... I loved Mariah and understood her flaws and anguish...she had been cheated on by the man she loves... multiple times for crying out loud! Alot of readers aren't giving her much of a break, I've noticed! I also loved Millie...what a firecracker she was!!
I absolutely loved Ian! I had a feeling from the get go that something wonderful would happen between he and Mariah! Oh, how I felt so sorry for him during the whole trial when things started to unfold. I started really liking Ian when he "snowed" the lady at the little cottage that they rented in Kansas City. He was so adorable... And you're right, when he had his morning visit with Michael and had a fun little "actual" conversation with him; that was so sweet. I almost wish, though, that Jodi would have let us readers know how Michael is! Is he coming around...or was that just temporary....
I had NO IDEA that these characters were in Change of Heart! I must find a copy!!
So the ending of Keeping Faith... Ughhhh, my mind is just wandering and wondering and going crazying with different scenarios! What did you gather from Faith's little bedroom scene?
I am glad I found this thread... I hope you check back w/ a post!!
Sheryl

I am delighted to find someone with whom I can discuss Keeping Faith! Hooray!
I liked Mariah, too. On the surface, it might seem like she is needy and weak, but she is STRONG...very strong. Her confidence has been shattered by her husband's appalling way of treating her depression, something that he himself has caused. She just needs a little affirmation and TLC, and when she gets it, from her mom but particularly from Ian, she absolutely soars! I also agree about Millie. Mariah must surely get her feistiness from her mom!
As for Michael, I think he remains the same as he was--there is no dramatic recovery after his exceptional connection with Ian. Those few moments, however, are enough to stir Ian out of his cynical view of life--he gains faith through Faith's small miracle. (I just love how the title has so many layers of meaning).
Here's something cool--I was so moved by this book that I wrote an email about it to Jodi and she answered the next morning! She takes the time to personally address every message that comes her way. After I explained what I liked about the book, I asked her this question:
I was wondering—did Ian’s character unfold for you as you wrote the story? In other words, did the course of his transformation take on a life of its own and present itself to you, like you’ve said happens in many of your books?
This was her response:
"Beverly, thanks for all the kind words - I love Ian; he's one of my favorites. I knew what he'd be like when I wrote him, but that moment with Michael was a surprise to me while I was writing! Ian reappears in my new book, Change of Heart."
I had just started reading Change of Heart when she wrote this, and I was so excited!
As for the ending, you can interpret it on many levels, and I think JP does that deliberately. This is what she said on her website about the ending of Keeping Faith:
"At the end of Keeping Faith, I wanted you to feel like Mariah and Millie and Ian and everyone else who comes into contact with Faith - like you've had to rethink what you believe. Whether you think she's a prophet or a messiah or a fake, she is ultimately a little girl who hasn't had her mom's attention before. And AT THAT MOMENT she does fake speaking to God, because she isn't willing to lose that attention. That said, I don't personally believe that Faith is faking all along…I think that God moves onto someone more needy in that last scene. But I did want you to remember that above all else, she's a kid - lest you fall into the same mistake that some of the media did during the course of the book."
I got the impression that Faith did not need the visions anymore and that they left for good, but she still needed her mom's love and attention, so she wanted to keep the visions alive.
Hope you don't mind the long response. Let me know when you finish Change of Heart--I'd love to chat about, among other things, what has happened with Faith, Ian and Mariah!
Bev

I love Ian, but the part when she slaps him: GOOD FOR HER! I'd do that to any hot man who comes between my baby (if I had one). Every part of this book was amazing. I want to read it right now if it weren't for the book I'm currently reading. Definetly a book to read more than once.

I am thrilled to have someone who feels the same about Ian Fletcher as I do! Yes...what makes him so loveable are his very human flaws--he is certainly not perfect but once his barriers are broken down, he readily admits that is so. Once he shows his vulnerable side, it's all over. What a guy! I also agree about the slap--it was very much necessary...and I think it's what ultimately woke him up to "take the bull by the horns," as it were, and put forth his full effort into winning both Mariah and the case.
Did you read Change of Heart yet and read about what's happened to Ian since that time?

The ending confused me a little bit... Really shocking at first! But then when I thought about it, I don't think she'd been faking all along. I think this was the first time.
What really got me thinking was, what happened next? Did Faith continue pretending to speak to God?? Did everyone continue to believe her? I would really like to know what exactly happened to Faith afterwards.
I also LOVED the title of this book! So clever.

Hi, Christina,
It's nice to hear someone else praise this book with the same enthusiasm that I have for it! If you scroll up in this thread, you can read my long message about the end of the book and Jodi's own comments. I tend to think that you are correct--since Faith no longer had the need for the visions, she stopped having them.
If you want to find out more about Faith in the future, you have to read Change of Heart. Your questions are pretty much answered in there. For now, however, my lips are sealed! I like to discover these things for myself when I read, and I don't ever want to spoil it for someone else. Write again if and when you read CoH.