Title: Small Great Things
Author: Jodi Picoult
Genre: Fiction
As so many people try to better themselves and the way that they see the world around them, it is hard to face so many topics that we might feel like we don't excel at. This story is the story of a murder trial. An infant has died while still at the hospital, and the parents are devastated. Through a series of events, they end up bringing charges against a nurse that was one of many medical staff present when their son died. This description, while completely accurate, sounds pretty standard, and not a terribly compelling read. As this book was one I think will stay with me for a long time now that I have finished it, I am clearly telling it wrong.
This story is told from three separate points of view. The defense attorney, who has finally been named lead chair of her first murder trial and feels like she may be moving up from the menial tasks she has been juggling for years. The African-American nurse who suddenly finds herself on trial for the death of an infant that she had been ordered by her superiors at the hospital not to treat, and who is now struggling with the concern over what will happen to her high-school-aged son if she is not able to be present to continue to raise him. The infant's father, who spoke to the nurse's manager to make sure that "no African-American staff will touch my child" and who is careful to wear a hat to cover up the swastika tattoo on his bald head when he wants to blend out in society.
The complicated plot and characters are interwoven beautifully in this novel, and the revelations that each one brings are something that will continue to leave me questioning my own ability to relate to those around me for years to come. One of my favorite descriptions of the purpose of fiction is to "help us connect with our own humanity". There are few books that can compare to this one in that task.
- Katrina
Check out Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult @ the library!
