Happy Monday! The purpose of memorable Monday is to showcase a book that you’ve read in the past and share how/why it has stuck with you.
This week I’m featuring:
Full warning: this is an intense novel that takes the reader into territory no one truly wants to go but unfortunately many have been forced to in today’s world. I still remember hearing about the Columbine shooting when I was young, but I don’t remember turning the TV on to a different shooting and/or threat on a regular basis which is the sad reality of today. Jodi Picoult is an author that’s notorious for going into risky and controversial territory to bring heart-wrenching stories. This is one I haven’t been able to let go and it comes to mind each time I see the horrifying news of another school shooting. Since almost all of the books I feature are Christian I want to make sure that you are aware that this one is not, but it’s still a book I consider an important read. This is not a book for everyone, as it’s clearly about a scary and difficult topic–but it can also be used as a teaching tool in hopefully preventing future threats. I think it’s an important read for teens but I would also strongly suggest that parents read it either before or with them so that they can walk through some of the more difficult parts together.
About 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.
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 the aftermath, the town’s residents must not only seek justice in order to begin healing but also come to terms with the role they played in the tragedy. For them, the lines between truth and fiction, right and wrong, insider and outsider have been obscured forever. Josie Cormier, the teenage daughter of the judge sitting on the case, could be the state’s best witness, but she can’t remember what happened in front of her own eyes. And as the trial progresses, fault lines between the high school and the adult community begin to show, destroying the closest of friendships and families.
Nineteen Minutes is New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult’s most raw, honest, and important novel yet. Told with the straightforward style for which she has become known, it asks simple questions that have no easy answers: Can your own child become a mystery to you? What does it mean to be different in our society? Is it ever okay for a victim to strike back? And who — if anyone — has the right to judge someone else?
About the Author:
Jodi Picoult is the author of twenty-four novels, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers Small Great Things, Leaving Time, The Storyteller, Lone Wolf, Between the Lines, Sing You Home, House Rules, Handle with Care, Change of Heart, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister’s Keeper. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband and three children.
Her new novel, A SPARK OF LIGHT, is available in hardcover, ebook, and audio on October 2nd.
Website: http://www.jodipicoult.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jodipicoult
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jodipicoult
Now it’s your turn!
Share the name of a book you read in the past and why it was so memorable to you in the comments below! I also invite you to click the link below to add your own Memorable Monday link and visit the other pages participating 🙂
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Seems like a book for our times for sure. 😭
It’s a very sad reality 😭