To discuss our book of the month please flow our blog link! Here is a quick link to My Horizontal Life discussion:
Julie and Julia by Julie Powell-- a discussion
Sunday at Tiffany's by James Patterson -- A book review
Janet- Being honest, I think imaginary friends are ridiculous. But PJ had a 'little PJ' that would just appear wherever he wanted him. I thought that was cute and I liked that he was using his imagination, but that was it. I definitely think that using your imagination to get you though tough times can take on many different forms. I know that if you can control your thoughts, you can control a bit of every situation. Like when I was in labor, I counted. I imagined the numbers as I said them and it had a calming effect on the hardest physical times of my life.
Lisa- I think it keeps them from dealing with life head on. Instead of having a real friend at school that she could confide in she had to make one up. Of course this books wants you to believe that they aren’t imaginary at all, but invisible friends. Daydreaming is another way people cope or hide from life.
Stacy- I think without our imaginations we would be lost. Imaginary friends only help kids; they have friends to fit their needs.
2.When Michael leaves Jane on her ninth birthday, Jane is devastated and says, "I'll never forget you Michael, no matter what." Do you think there is one perfect love for each of us? How influenced are we by portrayals of love and love affairs in the media, movies, and on television?
J- I do not believe that there is one perfect person out there for each of us. I do think that your choices in your life can help define who the person you are with will be. I believe that there can be a connection between two people that can be unexplainable. I also think that sometimes, even said connection or even love, is not enough to hold two people together. I think all of the outside sources in our lives can give us a skewed idea on love. I think true love is wonderful but it takes sacrifice and compromise (but not too many!), which much of the media leaves out.
L- I don’t believe in a perfect anything. Nothing is perfect. When I was younger I used to think that there was one person for everyone. I was also a pessimist and believed whenever I heard of a young boy dying on the news that he was probably my one. I know a bit morbid as well huh? I think personality-wise people can match in so many different ways. It’s all about choice. I think the media and such give us the impression that everyone cheats and has affairs and so on. I don’t believe it’s as commonplace as that although I don’t doubt it happening.
S- I don't think that there is one love for everyone; I think that there are many different kinds of love for everyone. Yes it would be everyone's dream to just be able to see someone and know that that was his or her perfect person, but that's not how life works.
3. Jane's play Thank Heaven, is based on her childhood friendship with Michael. Would you have an interest in seeing the play? Do you prefer the play's ending where Michael leaves Jane on her ninth birthday or do you prefer the book's ending where Jane and Michael meet again as adults?
J- I think that I like the plays ending. Obviously there would be no story if it did, but I think Jane needed to figure things out on her own.
L- It is hard to say really. In the scene where she buys herself a diamond ring is suppose to show that she’s an independent women (Destiny’s Child song playin’ right now!) but to me this is a contradiction to the whole story. She needed him to feel whole. I think if you can’t be happy with yourself your chances of ever being happy are slim.
S- I would see the play, I am a theatre person and I think that ending the play where he leaves and doesn't come back brings some emotion to it. It really makes the audience feel something. As a movie though you would need him to come back, because viewers would suggest that. That's the difference in movies and plays.
4. Michael gives up has immortality to be with Jane. Do you think he could have made another choice? Do you support his decision? If you had been presented with a similar situation, what would you have done to be with the one you loved?
J- I think Michael's decision was out of his hands and I would do anything, realistically, to be with the one I love.
L- I don’t think he knew he was making a choice. He was slowly falling in love and it happened. I don’t believe love is enough. Michael’s “life” concerns so many other people that if it were a conscience decision I would object. As for what would you have done to be with the one you loved…is moving to England mean anything?
S- I think that you only have one life to live and if you can't be with the one you think you are meant to be with then what is there to live for. Mine as well give it a shot right?
5. Michael takes Jane to Nantucket because he doesn't want to waist a minute of the time they have together. Michael says, "Is it so difficult to imagine or believe that a man and a woman can find happiness together for a little while, which, after all, is all that we have?" Is this the moral of the story for you? If not, what is?
J- I do think that it is the morale of the story - to cherish the moments you have together.
L- I never believed Jane was supposed to die. It was all the sudden thrown in and thought it a bit odd that he would have thought that when his job is to help kids deal with things that are wrong in their life; in Jane’s case a neglectful parent. Life is short. I think the moral of the story for me is that love can be found in unexpected places or that friends make the best lovers or something like that ;0)
S- I do not think this is the moral of the book, I am not sure what is, but I don't think it's that just because it is suggested. I will have to get back to you.
What we thought:
Janet: I really did not like this book. I thought the whole thing was a little ridiculous...I guess I wasn't expecting her to end up with Michael. I think that she should have figured things out for herself and maybe Michael would come into her life again to help her see that she could find someone better on her own. It was creepy to me that she knew this guy when she was nine. I know that I was supposed to get caught up in the romance of it all, but I just thought it was weird. So, overall, I did not enjoy it much.
Lisa: This book is Drop Dead Fred meets City of Angels. You have a little girl with an imaginary friend whom she is suppose to forget all about, but doesn’t. Then in-between “jobs” he’s in New York to help her once again. At least unlike City of Angels when he becomes “human” to be with her she doesn’t die right away. I don’t ever remember having an imaginary friend, but if we go by what these authors are saying we wouldn’t remember would we? Of course that’s just stupid because the parents would remember and then tell them, as they got older. I’m being a bit technical I know! Overall I think it was an average book. It entertained me while I read it and I don’t think I’ll be reading it again.
Stacy: All in all I thought it was a decent book, I probably wouldn't read it again, however it was good for what it was. It was a quick read and it kept me entertained. I did think that there was a bit of a creepy factor that he was her imaginary friend...I'm not sure why.
If you would like to share your thoughts please visit our blog (http://pagesofthemind3.blogspot.com/) There you will be able to discuss and share your thoughts on this title!
What our friends had to say:
I agree with Janet, this 30-something guy falling in love with a girl he was friends with when she was only nine was way to creepy. I also didn't like the 2 page chapter and choppy-ness of the writing. However, it was VERY City of Angels which I though was interesting. (Does anyone know which came first? I suppose I could look it up...)
Anyway, on to the discussion:
1. I never had imaginary friends but I remember trying to have them. It sounds silly, but I thought the idea was fascinating and wished I could have on of my own. I think that imaginary friends can be beneficial to a kid but I wonder how many kids who had serious imaginary friends become schizophrenic as adults?
2. I think love is more of an action than a reaction and therefor love for someone is often a choice and something that needs to be worked on. That's not to say I don't believe in falling in love; I think initially there is an attraction that connects us that some people call love but ten it comes down to commitment. This also means that I think any of us could be happy with almost anyone, it's just a matter of how hard you are willing to try. However, there are definitely people whom are better suited for us than others.
3. I second Lisa's motion on this one ;) I would rather think that the imaginary friend left her and she turned into a strong independent woman with no more need for this imaginary friend.
4. Within the context of the book, I totally support his decision and think it was the right one. He loved her and wanted to be with her and that's all that matters.
5. Again, I second Lisa...I think the moral of the story is more about finding love in unexpected places and doing whatever it takes to be with the one you love despite the potential for the love being cut short.
What Amy says:
1. Michael says that the role of an imaginary friend is to make children feel less alone and to help them find their place in the world. Do you think imaginary friends help children deal with their lives or keep them from dealing with life head on? In what other ways do we use our imagination to cope with life or hide from it?
I think they do both. If you use have an imaginary friend, you are using it to sort of separate yourself from reality of what is actually happening, but at the same time sometimes you need that "somebody" to help you sort out your feelings and thoughts. Who doesn’t talk to themselves still?! I think majority of people do, it is just with kids they use an imaginary friend to "talk to", and as adults we find friends and family who will listen to us about our thoughts and feeling, and how often to kids get ignored about their feelings? Or they don’t let us know about it in the first place.
2. When Michael leaves Jane on her ninth birthday, Jane is devastated and says, "I'll never forget you Michael, no matter what." Do you think there is one perfect love for each of us? How influenced are we by portrayals of love and love affairs in the media, movies, and on television?
I do think there are soul mates and a person you are destined to be with. I could not imagine myself with anyone but my husband. It is like we fit perfectly within each other, despite our differences. I do think there may be more than one person destined for you, but at different times (like when a spouse dies or something else tragic happens, and you find another love)
3. Jane's play Thank Heaven, is based on her childhood friendship with Michael. Would you have an interest in seeing the play? Do you prefer the play's ending where Michael leaves Jane on her ninth birthday or do you prefer the book's ending where Jane and Michael meet again as adults?
I would just because I am a sap for a good love story!!!! I of course would be DEVASTATED if it ended where Michael leaves and there is no "resolution".
4. Michael gives up has immortality to be with Jane. Do you think he could have made another choice? Do you support his decision? If you had been presented with a similar situation, what would you have done to be with the one you loved?
There was no other choice he could have made.... well ok...he could have not been with Jane, but even that wasn’t a choice for him. I think there is a destiny, and despite what you WANT, you don’t always get it "your way". For my husband, yes I would do absolutely anything if it meant making him happy and being with him. For anyone else...well, I don’t know, it depends, because obviously I don’t love them like I do Brent
5. Michael takes Jane to Nantucket because he doesn't want to waist a minute of the time they have together. Michael says, "Is it so difficult to imagine or believe that a man and a woman can find happiness together for a little while, which, after all, is all that we have?" Is this the moral of the story for you? If not, what is?
My moral of the story is love finds a way, no matter what. But it is a true point!
Thanks Ladies! It was a great book! Can’t wait for next month!!!
Amy
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult -- A Book Review
Janet: I enjoyed this novel's ups and downs. I love Picoult's trademark twists. I could not connect to Sara on any level in this story, no matter how hard I tried. Besides the main issue of her conceiving Anna just to save Kate and all the following medical procedures, I also felt that a good mother would never give up on a child (Jesse). I think this even spoke to me louder than the rest. How could you let that happen? How could you love child so much as to let another (or two, in this case) go? I enjoyed Anna's character and was very sad that she was the one who ended up dying. Overall, I really liked this novel.
Lisa: I really enjoyed this story. It is one of those situations where you don’t know what you would do or how you would feel if it were you. Although I think I agree with the father more. I think I know myself well enough that if I love any of my other kids as much as I love my daughter I could not use one of them to save the other. She didn’t want to send Anna to hockey camp because of what might happen to Kate if she were gone. WTF? So, she gave Anna life, but not to actually live. I didn’t really like the ending. I was hoping that Anna got to live her life and that Kate had some sort of miracle lived for another couple of years then passed away peacefully. I don’t know? But after all that and Anna dies anyway?
Stacy: As a whole I really enjoyed reading this book. It kept me interested, the characters were interesting, I agreed with Brian's role as Anna's father over Sara's role. I didn't like Sara much, no matter how many times she said she loved Anna and Jodi tried to show us through back stories and such, I still never believed it. I believed she loved Anna to some degree but I just felt her heart was with Kate and Kate only. We can say all we want that we would never do to our kids what Sara did to Anna, but do we really know that?Campbell and Julia's characters and story was a nice side story that I think helped make the book a little less intense. I have to say I really thought that Anna dying was the wrong choice, a powerful one, but not the one I wanted. I wanted her to give Kate her kidney by choice and have Kate go into an 8 year remission. Maybe I'm a sucker for happy endings.
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult
Here are our answers to the questions from Jodi Picoult's offical website (find the website on our LINKS page.)
1. Reread the prologue to My Sister's Keeper. Who is the speaker? Is it the same person you thought it was the first time you read it?
Janet- I don't have the book anymore!
Lisa- After finishing the story you have to assume it was Kate who is speaking in the Prologue; because she’s not dead, but you assume that starting the book that the sister with cancer must die.
2. What is the metaphorical relevance of Brian's profession as a fire chief?
J- As a fire chief, Brian has to put out the fire before it hurts someone. At home, he puts out fires one by one, hopefully before it hurts someone.
L- He saves lives everyday, but he is powerless to save his daughter.
Stacy- Brian puts out fires for a living, but with the fire burning in his own home it's not as easy. One might think that maybe the life of his daughter is the fire and we're just waiting for it to go out.
3. Why is Jesse's behavior so aberrant, while until now, Anna has been so compliant?
J- Jesse is the one who has to mourn the loss of his childhood. He knows his parents have to focus on Kate. Anna knows that too and responds in a different way because she has grown up this way and knows no difference.
L- I think Jesse probably felt useless not being able to help his sister like Anna does. Yet he probably also feels glad he’s not going through the same stuff as Anna. Which then makes him feel guilty all over again. Anna and Kate are best friends there is nothing that Anna wouldn’t do for her. At the age of 13 she’s thinking of her future and looking forward to growing up so until now she didn’t even question if she would help save her sister or not. Plus what she did before is nothing on the scale of donating an organ.
S- I think that Jesse's character is very interesting, he's this rebel kid, but when it comes down to it he's a great brother. He's there for Anna when she needs him to give her rides and to get in to see Kate, he supports her in her choices and he's there with Kate when no one else is. Anna is clearly compliant until now because she loves her sister, and she didn't know she had a choice to say no. How would she have known that she could say no?
4. What might be a possible reason for Brian's fascination with astronomy?
J- It seems to me to be another way to escape. With astronomy, there are maps and directions. With Brian's life there are no maps or directions, it probably would be comforting.
L- It’s the unknown. It reminds him of his life.
5. On page 98, Kate is being admitted to the hospital in very serious condition. She mouths to Jesse, "tell Anna," but is unable to finish. What do you think she was trying to say?
J- She probably wanted Anna to start to carry on the plan.
L- I think she wanted Anna to know that it’s starting and this is when she needs to be the strongest because seeing her sick will be hard and maybe make her back out of her decision.
S- Probably, "Tell Anna not to give up" or something to that nature.
6. On page 122, Julia says, "Even if the law says that no one is responsible for anyone else, helping someone who needs it is the right thing to do." Who understood better how to "help" Kate, Sara or Anna?
J- Anna for sure.
L- Anna. The mother was only in survival mode and was blinded by love and wouldn’t even consider thinking that maybe her daughter was ready to go.
7. Did Anna do the right thing, honoring Kate's wishes?
J- I believe so.
L- Yes, I think so. I hope that my wishes are honored when my time comes.
S- I don't think that anyone can really answer this question. All around yes she did the right thing in my opinion, for Kate and for herself. She needed that and Kate needed her to do it, I think, so she could feel less guilty about all the things Anna has given her when she can give nothing in return.
8. Do you feel it was unfair of Kate to ask Anna to refuse to donate a kidney, even though this seemed to be the only way for her to avoid the lifesaving transplant?
J- Nope, I have a feeling that I would feel like Kate does, and want it to be over. I also know that the only way Kate could get this accomplished is to use the closeness that her and Anna share to get it done.
L- Yes. It’s unfair because it’s a huge thing to ask someone. She was basically asking her sister to kill her. I don’t think I could do that.
9. On page 142, Brian says that when rescuing someone from a fire, that "the safety of the rescuer is of a higher priority than the safety of the victim. Always." How does this apply to his role in his own family?
J- Obviously, this is why he sides with Anna without asking a ton of questions, he takes her decision for face value.
L- Kate is the “victim” and Anna is the “rescuer” which is why I believe he sides with Anna.
10. On page 144, Brian says, "Like anything that's been confined, fire has a natural instinct to escape." How does this truth apply to Kate? to Brian himself?
J- Kate has been restricted for her whole life and death is considered an escape for her. Brian escapes through his work and astronomy. And even poor Anna would like to escape, despite her desire to help her sister.
L- Kate has been confined to a life of hospital visits. She wants to be let go. I think Brian feels the same way, he lives his life hospital visit to hospital visit and I think part of him is ready to let go.
11. On page 149, Brian is talking to Julia about astronomy and says, "Dark matter has a gravitational effect on other objects. You can't see it, you can't feel it, but you can watch something being pulled in its direction." How is this symbolic of Kate's illness?
J- Dark matter could be her illness and at times you could see it taking its toll on her.
L- Kate is the gravity and she is affecting the whole family and they can’t escape.
S- He is seeing Kate's disease pulling her in the direction of death. Maybe his fascination with stars has to do with the fact that we all need something bigger than ourselves to love. Something beautiful to get our mind off whatever it needs too. Maybe there isn't this big analytical answer.
12. For what reason(s) did Brian offer Anna a place to stay at the firehouse while the legal proceedings were underway?
J- I didn't read into this anymore that what was explained in the novel.
L- Read Question 9.
13. How does Anna's decision to pursue medical emancipation parallel Campbell's decision to end his relationship with Julia after his accident?
J- Each of them wants to do what they think is best for the one they love.
L- I would compare Campbell with Kate; he doesn’t want anyone to feel responsible for him anymore so to save anyone from a life of being a “carer” he makes the decision to break away. Kate doesn’t want her sister to feel responsible for her anymore. Julia is Anna but wasn’t asked.
14. Do you agree with Brian's decision not to turn Jesse in to the authorities for setting the fires?
J- Yes. I think after he had the heart to heart, it would never happen again.
L- Yes and No. No because as a firefighter he as a responsibility to protect people and his co-workers have been endangering themselves to stop these fires. On the other hand I don’t think I could turn in my own kid if I could honestly say he/she would never do it again.
S- Yes
15. Do you feel that it's ethical to conceive a child that meets specific genetic requirements? If not, do you believe that there should be specific exceptions, such as the purpose of saving another person's life, or is this just a "slippery slope?"
J- It is just a slippery slope. I do not believe it to be ethical to do what this family did.
L- No. It is a slippery slope, but if I was faced with a decision so save my unborn children from something deadly (not cosmetic or to save another child) I would. If there were some harmful gene that could be eliminated … but the problem is where does it stop?
S- No, a chance, never.
