A Review of "Sing You Home" [14]

Sing You Home: A Novel by Jodi Picoult
Atria, ISBN 978-1439102725
March 1, 2011, 480 pages

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Suddenly I am seized by a cramp so intense that all the breath rushes out of my body and I jackknife forward.

“Zoe?” My mother’s voice seems far away. I struggle to my feet.

Twenty-eight weeks, I think. Too soon.

Another current rips through me. As I fall against my mother, I feel a warm gush between my legs. “My water,” I whisper. “I think it just broke.”

But when I glance down, I am standing in a pool of blood.

Music therapist Zoe Baxter and her husband Max, want desperately to have a child and all their failing attempts are starting to take a huge medical, financial and emotion toll on their marriage. When she suffers a heartbreaking stillbirth well into her last pregnancy, it is the final straw for the marriage and Max walks out of the house and out of their life together. Dealing with both these losses, very depressed, Zoe finds herself turned around by the friendship of a counselor at one of the schools she works at, a friendship that turns quickly (perhaps too quickly to be really believable) into a romance. Add to that the fact that her new love is a woman, Vanessa.
Quickly (maybe too quickly again) married in Massachusetts, the couple decide to get use the frozen embryos Zoe and Max have to try and have a baby together, with Zoe's new spouse carrying the child. But when she goes to Max to get permission, she finds herself in the middle of a court case, being sued for custody.

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While I admit I have not read a lot of Ms. Picoult books, I totally loved My Sister's Keeper...and not just for the amazing ending. So when I read that she had a new book coming out, and the topics sounded so interesting, so timely, I was thrilled to get my hands on a copy. I opened the package and started reading it immediately.
Rarely have I been so disappointed in a book. Not for the controversial subject matter, no, not at all! In fact, just the opposite. No, what disappointed me is that Sing Me Home presents these topics in such a one sided, unfair, incomplete way, so less than what they deserve.

I have seen a number of rave reviews for this book in the last few days. I can not agree.
Picoult is a fine writer...and she does know how to create a good ending. I will happily give her that. And I must say that the book got off to a good start. The parts about the husband and wife's infertility, their marriage falling apart, her finding love in a totally unexpected place, was very good and I was hopeful that I was going to like this book. Then, for me, it fell off a cliff.
I may suggest that part of the problem is that this books wants to take on just too many controversial questions in one book. These are interesting and very important questions presented in this book, questions no doubt decided in many a court case these days. But these issues deserve better than the one sided, one dimensional portrayal Picoult gives us.

On Zoe's side, the characters are almost saints, noble, good, selfless people. Even her lawyer, who will soon be getting a halo no doubt, is just such a nice person. How can you not agree with her? Zoe and Vanessa are so nice, how can we not want them to win?
On the ex-husband's side, everyone is evil and conniving, with totally selfish and nasty motivations. Max is a weak fool, with a reoccurring drinking problem, being used by others for their own, selfish, evil reasons. His lawyer is so loathsome that he only lacks a waxed mustache to twirl as he laughs a creepy laugh, to be complete. Yes, it is hard to portray people we really disagree with as decent people, with valid arguments..so much easier to paint them with a broad, ugly brush...and results in a book that could have been so much better.

As I said, I think this books starts by exploring some serious and timely topics that deserve better than the caricatures that the author descends into in the last half of the book. I don't think we get far in a discussion, as individuals or as a society, by just painting 'the other side', whatever that might be, as fools or idiots or evildoers. If you agree with the author's point of view and just want that reinforced, you may like this book and not see a problem. If you really want a fair and comprehensive exploration of some of this issues, something that makes you think, maybe makes you take another look at both sides, you will have to look elsewhere.
Rarely has a book disappointed me so much for what it could have been and was not, because the author decided to take the 'easy' way out.

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My thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book to review.

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