What a way to start a book. Like we all know if you just read the first sentence and like it, it is a good book. Well just reading the first sentence "When I was little, the great mystery to me wasn't how babies were made, but why”. If this doesn't grab your attention I don't know what will. The first chapter is from Anna's point of view. She describes her life and her purpose. Unlike the normal girl Anna's purpose on this earth is to save her sister. Anna was mechanically engineered with her mother's eggs and her father's in a combination of precious genetic material. The reason why she was made like this is because of her sister’s condition. Her sister Kate is diagnosed when she was two, so older brother Jesse lived when the family was normal but he was still young. Now that Kate is diagnosed with acute promyeloctic leukemia the Fitzgerald family is no longer the same.. Since Anna is the biological match to Kate, this means every time Kate is hospitalized so is Anna. Anna will give bone marrow, leukocytes or stem cells to her sister to trick her body in thinking that she is healthy. At the moment in the book Kate does not have acute promyeloctic leukemia but it is just inactive.
Already an enticing story in just a few pages, this book is a real page tuner! Anna is the main character in this story and an extremely interesting character in fact. Since her life revolves around her sister she sees the world differently. Just 13 years old and has already been through more than the normal person. She was remarkably different from any one else. Even though she is an exact biological match to her sister, she is a unique individual. To answer Anna’s question and the tittle of the book, the reason why Anna was created was to be her sister’s keeper. There are different reason for everyone to be here, as she goes on we will find out whether she likes her reason of been here or will change it to suit her and change her life forever. Stay tuned... - SundusTheme
Through out the book you can see that the characters are faced with problems. Once faced with a problem you have to make a decision on how you are going to deal with the problem. In most cases there is a clear right and wrong choice to every decision. In this book it is not always the cases thought... and that is the theme of the book, that an individual cant awlays see line between right and wrong. Sara Fitzgerald was faced with a problem, The problem is that her daughter Kate is diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. Quickly Sara being t look at possible solutions to this problem. Due to her cancer Kate will need a donor--someone to give her organs and blood etc --- who is a match. Because nor Sara, Brian or Jesse are a genetic match to Kate. The solution that they come to is to have another child to will be a genetic match. To insure that the new child would be a genetic match doctors with have to genetically engineer the egg and sperm of Kate and Brian to create a 100% donor child match. Once this child is born -- Anna-- doctors will begin taking parts of the child to give to Kate.Here is the great question that is the story line and theme of the book, is this choice right or wrong, to save your child's life at the expense of your other child. The line between right and wrong isn't always a clear line.Yes a mother should do everything in her power to save her child's life if she is in danger, which Kate was. Both of Kate's kidneys failed and she needed a kidney from Anna -- her younger sister who was a genetic match -- without it, Kate would die. So only looking at it through Kate's perspective, yes making Anna give Kate one of her kidneys is the right thing to do. As well as make Anna give Kate anything that she had excess of and Kate needs. Threw this point of view Sara, yes saving one child's life at the expense of your other child is right... in my opinion.
Thought being a mother you cant look at your family only caring about one child but all of them. The line between right and wrong is not as clear here. Threw the view of Sara's youngest daughter Anna, life is hard. Always being hospitalize and being born for the soul purpose of saving her sister isn't easy. Anna went through numerous surgeries and blood transfusions in order to save her sister. Once the question of giving her sister kidneys comes up Anna beings to question her importance. This surgery won't be easy and Anna won't be able to do certain things anymore,is that fair? Threw this point of view Sara saving one child's life at the expense of your other child is wrong... in my opinion “You know how every now and then, you have a moment where your whole life stretches out ahead of you like a forked road, and even as you choose one gritty path you've got your eyes on the other the whole time, certain that you're making a mistake.”
Even thought at the end of the book we find out that Kate is the one who told Anna to deny giving her kidneys to her sister, and that Anna was willing to give her kidneys. You still need to ask yourself is it right or wrong and where do her draw the line - Sundus
Conflict
There are several conflicts throughout the novel. There are conflicts that are small as well as the large conflict that is carried out throughout the novel. The smaller conflicts are Jesse’s behavior. Jesse has an outburst of troubles in the book. Jesse feels ignored and act out by smoking, drinking and setting fires. The conflict Jesse is having isn’t the main problem but is something that comes up in the book.
The main conflict—which is the story line of the novel—is Anna Fitzgerald suing her family for the rights to her own body (medical emancipation). Throughout Anna’s entire life she was been a donor for her sick sister Kate. Kate has acute promyeloctic leukemia and has had it since she was two years old. Once Kate was diagnosed her parent decided that they would have another child who will be an exact genetic match to Kate, so she can be a donor. The problem is the parents of Anna—Sara and Brian Fitzgerald—didn’t exactly ask Anna for permission to take from her. Anna went through surgeries after surgeries for her sister and the problem is, she doesn’t want to do it anymore. Both of Kate’s kidneys failed and she needs and new one. Anna is supposed to give one of her kidneys to her sister, when her family gets sued by Anna. Shockingly Anna went behind her parents back and met with a Lawyer who accepted to take on Anna’s case for medical emancipation. This is the conflict throughout the book and what tares the family apart when daughter goes against family in court. As you can guess the reaction of the family from this news, it wasn’t the best. During the novel you hear about the case and know the outcome shocking outcome.
Who is going to win the case… Is Anna really too young to be medically emancipated…. Will Sara apologize for all that she put Anna through… Will Anna drop the charges and help her sister…. I guess that is for you guys to find out .
Setting
The novel, My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult, the location of the setting takes place in a small town of Upper Darby in the state of Rhode Islands. The setting of the novel jumps around from year to year, month to month and day to day. Instead of chapters there are days of the week. It starts off on a Monday and trough out the day it focuses on several characters. When the mother , Sara is narrating, she takes the story in the part years of 1990, 1991, 1996, 2001, and the present day. The rest of the characters narrate the story in present time. The author writes the novel jumping from the part to the present to tell the reader what is going on. The author starts to talk about one part of the novel, for example, Anna finding a lawyer to sue her parents for the rights of her own body, ans then suddenly the setting switches to the past when Anna was not even born and Sara is in the hospital taking with doctors about Kate's cancer. The author does this switching back and forth from the present to the past constantly.
Characters
Anna: Anna is thirteen years old, she is the youngest child of the Fitzgerald family. She is the protagonist of this novel. Anna is the product of primplantation genetic diagnosis. She is a savior sibling, which is a child who is born to provide organ and cell transplantation, or bone marrow to a sibling. Her parents conceived her- with the aid of scientists- for a reason: to provide Kate with genetic match whom organs could help keep Kate alive. Anna's role in Kate's survival has made Anna unable to be her own person. She has undergone countless surgeries and this is effecting her life. Her dreams to be a cheerleader and a mother will not be accomplished if she donates her kidney to her sister Kate. Anna's action is what drives the plot. Anna began to question who she truly is "(8). It made me wonder, though, what would have happened if Kate had been healthy. Certainly I would not be apart of this family". Although it hurts her deeply, she brings a lawsuit to her parents for medical emancipation. The lawsuit will give Anna control of her body, and she will not be forced by her parents to donate her organs to her sister Kate.
Sara: The mother of the Fitzgerald family. She studied law school and she is a lawyer but she spends her time at home as a housewife and a mother of three children. Sara is strong and stubborn and her life centers on her efforts to keep Kate alive. Whatever other problems she encounters, be it Jesse's bad attitude and lifestyle, and Anna's need for independence, Kate's survival is what matters to her. Focused so much on being a mother for Kate, she does not always fill the role of being a mother for her other children. In a flashback, Sara promised to her son Jesse that she would by new soccer shoes to him after the dentist appointment, but because she is so worried about Kate, she forgot about it and canceled the appointment. " Your sister is incredibly sick. I'm sorry if that interferes with your dentist's appointment or your plan to go buy a pair of cleats. I'd think that since you're ten, you might be able to grow up enough to realize that the whole world doesn't always revolve around you" (166). She tends to disregard Jesse's self-destructive behavior and she says he is doing everything for attention. Similarly, she is the wife of Brian and the sister of Zanne. Sara struggles to talk with Brian about anything other than Kate.The few times she sees her sister is when she arrives to rake care of Jesse and Anna. Even tho she has a deep and endless love to her family, sometimes she doesn't know how to show to that.
Campbell: Campbell Alexander is the lawyer of Anna. At the beginning of the book, Campbell has almost no friends except his service dog , Judge. He found it difficult to be who his parents wanted him to be and he has secrets that he is unwilling to share with his parents. " I didn't even tell my parent's". Lawyer, Campbell Alexander is diagnosed with epilepsy. Epilepsy is a neurological condition, which effects the nervous system. Epilepsy is also known as a seizure disorder. Campbell shut down himself and kept friends and his loved ones away from him. He Back in his high school years, he was in a relationship with a girl named Julia, but he broke up with her because of his conditions. Near the end of the novel, he explains to Julia that Judge is a epilepsy dog and he didn't think she should have to live with his seizures." I had to live with it forever, which is what made me realize that no one else should have to" (384).
Brian: Brian Fitzgerald is the father of three children, he is a firefighter and he has a love for astronomy. He is motivated to Kate's situation by his love for his wife and her children. In contrast to Sara, Brian can view Anna's situation from her perspective, making him more perceptive and understanding than Sara at times. Yet, he escapes to his work to avoid dealing with the hardship surrounding his family. He does his best to help Anna make the right decisions. Unlike Sara, Brian admits and recognizes that Kate's lekeumia is fatal and that even they provide treatment, the treatment may only prolong Kate's life wihout curing her." She is dying Sara. She will die, either tonight or tomorrow or maybe a year from now if we’re really lucky. You heard what Dr. Chance said. Arsenic’s not a cure. It just postpones what’s coming"(265).
Jesse: Jesse Fitzgerald is the oldest child of the family. He is extremely different from his family and also the troublemaker. He.He seems to have a rebellious and depressed personality. While driving down the road he thinks, "It would solve a thousand problems if I rolled the jeep over an embankment" (94). He smokes, drinks, and takes drugs. Throughout the book, we see him as a troubled pyromaniac child who starts a series of fires. He identifies with Anna because they both feel unregarded by their parents in favor of Kate. He felt ignored by his parents and he act out in part to gain their attention.
Julia: Julia Romano is the guardian ad litem to Anna and Campbell's high school girlfriend. As Campbell and Julia deal with Anna, old feelings arise. Julia has a real desire to discover what is the best for Anna and she is one of the most open and caring characters in the story. Near the end of the book, Campbell clarifies the reason why he had to leave her and it was because of his epilepsy and seizures. He thought she should not be living with that. Julia is very accepting because when she learned this, she was very mad and her attitude was reflecting that she would of stayed with him no mater what. “You might have let me make my own mind. If I’d had the choice, maybe I wouldn't have spent the past fifteen years thinking there was something the matter with me” (384).
Kate: The middle Fitzgerald child and the focal point of the novel’s events. She was diagnosed with APL - acute promyelocytic lekeumia- when she was two years old. Kate’s cancer is at the heart of the story, but she only narrates the epilogue of the novel. She had struggled with cancer nearly her whole entire life, and she appears to have come to terms with the fact that she might die. When Sara and Brian were in the hospital, Sara asked Kate's doctor, Mr.Chance, if Kate will die. The doctor's respond was " of the twenty children here today, ten will be dead in a few years, I don't know which group Kate will be in" (63). Her battle with cancer is what describes her character.
