Picoult writes thought provoking books. In this book we have a rape, attempted suicide, a talented athlete being charged as an adult as drug is found in the victim's blood, a suspected murder and a missing person. I have read about self mutilation, but until it is explained in explicit details in this book, I did not see how someone could cut herself.
Perhaps I, as a baby-boomer, grew up in difficult financial circumstances. My generation tend to see emotional issues in its rightful perspective. There was no one I know who attempt to kill himself or herself over losing a lover. Recently, it is common to read of suicides of teenager or folks in their early twenties because their loss of love. Last week, my mother was lamenting on the fact that a qualified young doctor who came from a well-to-do family killed himself because a girl he loved chose someone else. From the photo published in the newspaper, the deceased was rather good looking. Friends commented that he was sociable and could be considered as popular.
After reading this book, I begin to wonder if it is good for parents to love and over protect their children. The world is a rather hostile place and there is hardly much fairness in life. Yet how do parents incorporate a training for emotional strength into their children so that when the storms of life strike, the latter could prevail?
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