According to Dictionary.com, a keeper is defined as a person charged with responsibility for the preservation and conservation of something valuable. All her life, 13-year-old Anna Fitzgerald has filled this role for her 16-year-old sister Kate, a cancer patient. Written by best-selling author Jodi Picoult, the 2004 novel, My Sister’s Keeper, explores the strength of a family plagued by cancer and the choices one makes that can tear it apart.
At only two-years-old, Kate is diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), a very rare cancer with only a 20 to 30 percent survival rate. In desperate hopes of saving their daughter, Sara and Brian Fitzgerald seek a geneticist and choose the embryo that will be a perfect match and donor for Kate.
All her life, Anna has known she was conceived for the purpose of saving her sister’s life. Since her diagnosis, Kate has gone through various transplants, surgeries, therapies and medical visits to continue battling the cancer. Each time she undergoes one of these procedures, Anna must give something up to help Kate, such as cord blood, bone marrow and white blood cells.
She has never questioned this responsibility, but also feels she has never been given the choice to decide whether or not to donate parts of her body to Kate. At 16-years-old, Kate goes into renal failure and needs a new kidney in order to live. Foreseeing this intensive upcoming transplant, Anna seeks the helps of Campbell Alexander, a famous attorney known for winning children’s cases.
Anna’s decision to sue her parents for medical emancipation shocks her entire family. Anna claims that her parents only care about her because she can help Kate. She feels invisible and wants to make her own decisions about how her body is used, even though it means allowing her sister to die. While Anna claims this is her reason for the lawsuit, she keeps the truth a secret from everyone but her sister, a secret that no one in the family could imagine.
The rest of the book centers around the battle of Anna’s body versus her parents’ decisions, while Kate lies only weeks away from death. However, a surprising twist in the outcome will change every circumstance and tear the family apart.
My Sister’s Keeper covers a variety of controversial issues such as cancer, children’s lawsuits and selecting desirable traits. However, Picoult touches on these subjects with intelligence, making the story seem plausible without any bias. She also gives insight into the history and facts about medicine, astronomy and fires, without it seeming complicated, so that one actually learns from reading the novel.
Unlike most books I have read, Picoult uses a unique writing style to tell the story of the Fitzgeralds. Each chapter signifies a certain person’s perspective and thoughts, similar to journal entries. Also, each chapter contains the character’s certain font and first person account of the present day or past memories.
All the chapters are divided between six characters: Anna, Brian, Sara, Campbell, Anna’s older brother Jesse and Julia, a guardian ad litem, or legal counselor, appointed to Anna’s case to decide what decision lies in her best interest. Kate also has a solitary chapter at the end.
The diary-like chapters intrigue the reader because each character communicates in its own way. While Brian’s chapters may seem meditative, Jesse’s usually include comedy. Almost every chapter begins with a pensive question or humanistic idea from the character, allowing them to seem like real humans.
The events of My Sister’s Keeper span a period of only 10 days, but each character reflects on previous events or memories that give background to the history of the characters. Although it may seem confusing when the writer bounces from present to past without really telling the reader, this technique causes the story to seem realistic. As one character observes something, he may be reminded of something from his past, similar to real life.
Each “day” begins with a quote or short poem relating to fire. These quotes seem very contemplative and influence the reader to study it before moving on, trying to decipher its meaning. While some readers may enjoy this, I found it irritating as I tried to understand what the author wanted to convey.
While the unique chapters can intrigue readers, many climactic events occur at the closing of the chapter, creating many cliff-hangers throughout the novel as a new character’s chapter begins. Although this seems to leave the reader without the information needed, Picoult cleverly uses this technique to draw the reader toward the end of the novel where everything is explained.
The insight into the characters exposes their personalities and creates identifiable and different humans, causing the reader to relate or disagree with their behavior. With such different personalities, most readers can identify themselves with one of the characters. As I read the book, I felt the characters were trying to explain their emotions and actions to me, creating a connection to the book.
The Fitzgeralds’ lives can also be associated with many teens or adults. After being plagued by cancer, the family seems to nearly fall apart. They struggle with near-separation, death, a rebellious son and other problems that add to their humanness.
With a length of 423 pages, My Sister’s Keeper encompasses a variety of emotions and topics including love, heartbreak, reconciliation, controversy, struggles, sadness and a hint of mystery, making it appeal to many different readers. Though My Sister’s Keeper covers a sensitive issue, Picoult’s writing style crafts a story as tangible as the classics.
My Sister’s Keeper can be purchased for about $10 at most local bookstores and at Amazon.com. A movie adaptation was also released with the same title, June 26, with a different ending. For more information about the film version, please visit MySistersKeeperMovie.com.
