I believe this is Jodi Picoult's first novel. Although it's not the first one I read, this novel can still make you fall IN LOVE with her.

Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite authors. With every book I read, she never fails to amaze me.

You always learn something new. For example, in this one, you learn about humpback whales, which is something I never thought I'd read about.

Let me be more specific about what this book is actually about. It's not only about humpbacks. :D

The main characters are Jane, Oliver Jones, and Rebecca.

Jane and Oliver are married, and Rebecca is their daughter. Oliver is an oceanographer, so the reader learns about humpbacks through him.

Sadly, Jane always comes second in Oliver's life because he is very focused on his career. He and Jane have a big argument, and Jane and Rebecca end up driving across America to Uncle Joley (Jane's brother). Of course, Oliver Jones eventually figures out where they are going and decides to follow them.

The story is told through different voices, which is one of the things I love the most about Picoult. By the time you finish reading, you have an extremely good understanding of the events that have occurred and every character involved.

I highly recommend this book!!!

Wow.

Jodi Picoult's writing has truly made remarkable progress since this particular work. I have an absolute passion for her writing style. She has this amazing ability to incorporate diverse viewpoints, which enriches the story and allows readers to see different perspectives. Moreover, the relationships she creates in her books are often deep and meaningful, adding another layer of depth to the narrative.

However, this book unfortunately fell short in numerous aspects. It didn't quite reach the high standards that I have come to expect from her.

Nonetheless, it's important to remember that this is her very first book. And considering that, it's truly astonishing to witness how far she has advanced in her writing. It's a testament to her talent and dedication as an author.

Despite the flaws in this initial work, it's clear that Jodi Picoult has the potential to create truly outstanding literature, and I can't wait to see what she has in store for us in the future.

Jodi Picoult has essentially five recurring characters and two common premises. She struggles to effectively distinguish the voices of her characters. Additionally, in this book, not only do the characters take turns in narrating, but one of them tells the story in reverse order, à la Memento, for no apparent reason.

However, despite these flaws, her writing is incredibly addictive. I can't quite put my finger on why. Every time I pick up one of her books, thinking "this one will be different," I end up getting completely engrossed for a few days. And then, when I'm done, I feel like I need to read a bunch of really dense nonfiction as a form of penance for falling into the trap yet again. It's a strange cycle, but there's something about her writing that keeps pulling me back in, even though I know better.

I find myself simultaneously hating and loving the experience of reading her books. On one hand, I'm frustrated by the predictability and lack of depth in some aspects. On the other hand, I can't deny the page-turning quality that keeps me hooked from start to finish. Maybe it's the emotional connections she manages to create with the characters, or the way she weaves a complex and engaging plot. Whatever it is, Jodi Picoult has a way of making me forget my initial reservations and just enjoy the ride.

Sorry, Jodi, but you get one star for this book and one star only.

Issues:

Organization:

News flash! Confusing time skips are a major problem here. With four POVs telling the story chronologically and one telling it backwards, it's both confusing and annoying. It took me at least half of the book to realize that what Rebbeca was talking about hadn't happened yet. I didn't understand exactly what was going on with Rebbeca's chapters until I read the Q&A with the author at the back. Instead of progressing like the other four "voices", Miss. Rebecca's POV begins at the end and works backwards. This was a big issue for me because once I figured out that Rebecca's chapters were future events, the ending held no surprises.

Characters:

Why do I always hate Picoult's mothers so much? I've read eight of her books and haven't found a mother figure I really like. In "The Tenth Circle", Laura cheats on her devoted husband. In "Change of Heart", June would rather her daughter die than take the heart of a "monster". In "My Sister's Keeper", Sara would have operated on Anna herself. And in "Songs of the Humpback Whale", Jane is a whiny brat who cheats on her husband. I had a hard time with Jane. Supposedly, her husband mistreats her, but we only have one slap and his workaholism to support that. Meanwhile, Jane travels cross-country with her daughter, meets a man, and falls in love with him in five days. She sleeps with him and blabs about how different she feels. I have more sympathy for the supposed abusive husband. He has the chance to cheat on his wife as he chases her across the country, but he walks out because he loves her. He walks in on her with another man and is still willing to forgive her. He's the real sufferer in this book.

Too Much Backstory:

Picoult has a history of using tiring flashbacks and backstory to make her characters three-dimensional, and it starts with this book. Rebbeca survived a plane crash as a three-year-old. Jane's father was a pervert. The first time Jane had sex, a trip to the beach with her brother. It gets tiring after a while. Readers sometimes want to read about unencumbered characters who develop as the story progresses, not before it starts.

The book gets one star. Although the rest of her books seem better, I give them at most four stars and average around 2.5 - 3 stars each. I don't see the point in reading more of her books. They become repetitive and predictable. If you read a Picoult book, you'll generally read about a big, controversial issue, a dramatic lawsuit or trial, mother figures who make you want to scream, multiple viewpoints, backstories and subplots galore, characters who can't make up their minds, and fair but not top-notch writing. I started counting the number of times "it was a catch-22" showed up in "Handle With Care", but gave up after a dozen.

I am extremely disappointed in this book.

Ordinarily, Jodi Picoult's books are worthy of at least 4 stars. However, I struggled to give this particular one even 2 stars.

My disillusionment was complete when the 25-year-old man in the story engaged in a sexual relationship with one of the main characters, a 15-year-old girl.

It was made even worse by the description of the 15-year-old as being "very mature". Seriously, she is just 15 years old!

The characters came across as self-centered and rather uninteresting.

If this had been my very first encounter with a Picoult novel, I highly doubt that I would bother to read another.

The overall plot and character development in this book simply failed to meet the high standards that I have come to expect from Jodi Picoult.

It is a real pity that this particular work did not live up to her usual caliber.

Perhaps she will return to form with her next novel.

With the release of Picoult’s new book just around the corner, I have made up my mind to reread all of her books in chronological sequence.

I have completely lost count of the number of times I have read each of her books. However, whenever I reread her novels, I always manage to gain a fresh perspective.

This particular book was her very first novel, and it holds such a special place in my heart that I could easily reread it countless times.

Picoult is not only my favorite author at present but will always remain so. Her writing style, the depth of her characters, and the complexity of her storylines never fail to captivate me.

Rereading her books is like embarking on a new journey each time, and I can't wait to see what new insights and emotions I will discover this time around.

I am truly looking forward to delving back into the world of Picoult's novels and experiencing the magic all over again.

This was a truly difficult book to read.

Not only was it related to the complex and often harrowing events in the story, but also the construction of it added to the challenge.

The traumas endured by the characters, which were laid bare, were mirrored in the fragmented and piecemeal way the book told their tale.

Regrettably, the harsh reality is that there are countless individuals in the world who have walked similar or even more difficult paths.

However, this does not serve as an excuse for the unthinking choices made in real life or by the characters within the context of this story.

Perhaps, though, this tale does offer a glimmer of hope. It gives one a moment to pause and reflect back on one's own life.

To reassess those areas and situations where it might have been wonderful to have a second chance.

And also to perceive with gratitude and a deeper understanding the many gifts that one has been fortunate enough to receive.

In this way, the book, despite its difficulties, can have a profound and lasting impact on the reader.

I hadn't realized when I picked up this book that it was one of Picoult's first published novels. She has come a long way since then!

Some of the scenes in this book are so contrived that I continued reading in much the same way people continue staring at really bad movies. In one chapter, a character reveals she was molested by her father while engaged in foreplay with a guy she met a few days prior. He is so moved by what she endured and he so totally gets her and she feels that he gets her. Then he feels her up and they get busy and it is, like, the defining moment of their lives. Seriously?

Then the 15-year-old daughter of said molested woman runs off with a 25-year-old and he so gets her and she so gets him. He takes her virginity on a mountaintop but then her dad finds them and yells. Then the 25-year-old guy falls off the mountain and dies. For real. Then the girl claws at her chest and needs to be sedated. Upon waking and being asked why she was clawing at her own chest, she explains that she was trying to tear her heart out. The End.

Picoult probably cringes when fans tell her they related to or loved this book. It is that bad. It seems that in an attempt to create drama and intense emotions, the plot has become overly convoluted and almost absurd. The relationships and events lack authenticity and seem forced. While Picoult may have improved her writing skills over the years, this early work serves as a reminder that even great authors have their beginnings and growing pains.

This has its good and bad points for me.

I really enjoyed the outer story. It's about a woman who, after years of marriage, is not sure if her husband truly loves her or if she loves him. So, she decides to take off on a trip across the country with her teenage daughter. Along the way, she discovers many things - about life and love.

However, the humpback whale thing was sorta boring to me. These sea creatures are her husband's life work and love, and that's what is pulling him away from her.

The end has sadness, but it also has some elements that were disturbing to me as a parent. Without giving anything away, I'll stop here.

The story was fast-moving at times, but it felt too fast at the end. I had several questions that were left unanswered.

Overall, it was an interesting read, but it had its flaws.

Jodi Picoult's "Songs of the Humpback Whale"

My desire to get to know the author's work more closely began with the books "Mercy" and "Small Great Things". These books were like a good appetizer, compared to other books, as the main ideas and endings of the books were touching and educational. Since then, I have started to collect the author's books. Now I have the entire collection of her books, translated and published by Alma littera Publishing House.

I hope that most of you have already heard about my Instagram initiative #readpicoultogether, where I invite you to join me and read the author's books from her first published one. In this case, from "Songs of the Humpback Whale".

Although I decided to start getting to know from the beginning (the first book), it was quite difficult to "lower the high standards" and not believe in such "bombs" as my first two read books by the author were. It was somewhat successful. I hoped that getting to know would be a bit more complicated..

The book did not disappoint, it was not a pain to read it, but I also did not feel a great effect. I think I did not understand it as I expected. I did not understand why the title is like that, I did not understand the author's hidden message..

The book was not easy to read: there were too many characters, so I had to write down the names of each character and what they are in the book next to the book (already on the 60th of the first pages there were 6 main characters). However, the story of the book itself is quite interesting, exploring complex family relationships, when the family's happiness is overshadowed by the difficulties of career pursuit. I especially felt a great sympathy for the youngest character in the book, Rebekah - a girl with an unusually sharp character and mind, who is only 14 years old. And I felt a complete antipathy for her mother, Jane - who, although she has grown up and has really painful experiences in life, seemed to me more childish than her daughter. A naive and resentful woman. Just such a set of qualities I cannot tolerate in books.

I will not start talking about the plot of the book. What seems much more important to me is the essence of the book. But what is it? That it is worth sacrificing one's personal happiness for the sake of the family? Of a husband whom one does not love? Or that the most important thing is a complete family, although unhappy, but a "good family example" for the daughter? I do not understand, but maybe someone will explain it to me?

In general, the story was not breathtaking, the text flowed easily through the eyes and it was pleasant to read this drama, but I will repeat - I did not understand the messages that the book sends to the reader. I was angry and did not justify Jane's actions, especially it was a pity that Hedley's life turned out so unfairly and it was uniquely a pity for Sam (I said there are many characters).

As an avid Jodi Picoult reader, I was truly and deeply disappointed by this book. Usually, her books have an irresistible charm that makes it impossible for me to put them down. However, in this case, I found the characters extremely difficult to relate to, and consequently, it was hard to care about them. Some of them were not just a little off-putting but downright creepy and disturbing. Take Joely, for instance, who is apparently madly in love with his own sister. And then there's Hadley, a 25-year-old man who thinks it's okay to have a sexual relationship with a naive and emotionally immature fifteen-year-old girl. That, of course, is called statutory rape.

The narrative is written from the points of view of five characters. The way the story is structured is also rather convoluted and hard to follow. For example, the character of Rebecca starts at the future and works backwards, while all the other characters give their version of the story in real time. The ending was extremely flat and boring, lacking any real direction. I simply couldn't understand why Jane went back to her husband, especially considering it was an unhappy marriage and she was in love with another man. Why would the character make the same mistake twice? The novel finishes exactly where it started, and none of the characters really evolve or change for the better.

I was quite surprised that this novel was actually published. I had the distinct impression that the book had not been edited or proofread at all and was in desperate need of a major rewrite. My advice to potential readers is simple: don't bother reading this novel. Instead, I would highly recommend some of Jodi Picoult's better novels like My Sister's Keeper, The Plain Truth, and Salem Falls. These books showcase her true talent and storytelling abilities.

First of all, it is very palpable that this is the author's first book. The chronology hinders rather than helps reading. I didn't like that the fate of some important characters was revealed at the beginning (usually the author does that, but here it was somehow different, there was no mystery left at all). And that non-stop talk about waves led astray. Overall, it really liked, with painful themes, complex relationships, and strong characters. And the ending, so realistic and unfair, even mean. Well, but that's just the way it is... A weak impression, but still I don't regret reading, I learned interesting things.

It should be noted that despite the drawbacks, the book still has its charm. The author's writing style is quite unique, although the chronology issue needs to be improved. The exploration of themes such as love, loss, and identity is quite deep. The characters are well-developed and have their own personalities and motives.

Maybe with more experience and practice, the author will be able to write even better books in the future. I look forward to seeing the author's growth and development.