Publisher Description
When Willow is born with severe osteogenesis imperfecta, her parents are devastated—she will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows, a lifetime of pain. In this provocative story from the #1 New York Times bestselling author, “Picoult writes with unassuming brilliance” (Stephen King).
Every expectant parent will tell you that they don’t want a perfect baby, just a healthy one. Charlotte and Sean O’Keefe would have asked for a healthy baby, too, if they’d been given the choice. Instead, their lives are made up of sleepless nights, mounting bills, the pitying stares of “luckier” parents, and maybe worst of all, the what-ifs. What if their child had been born healthy? But it’s all worth it because Willow is, funny as it seems, perfect. She’s smart as a whip, on her way to being as pretty as her mother, kind, brave, and for a five-year-old an unexpectedly deep source of wisdom. Willow is Willow, in sickness and in health.
Everything changes, though, after a series of events forces Charlotte and her husband to confront the most serious what-ifs of all. What if Charlotte had known earlier of Willow’s illness? What if things could have been different? What if their beloved Willow had never been born? To do Willow justice, Charlotte must ask herself these questions and one more. What constitutes a valuable life?
Emotionally riveting and profoundly moving, Handle with Care is an unforgettable novel about the fragility of life and the lengths we will go to protect it.
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"I really enjoyed this book, and I cried like maniac throughout the whole novel. This is definitely one of, if not the most, tragic novels Jodi Picoult has EVER written. From the relations to the characters everything screams angst and tragedy. I have a family very much like Charlotte's. A father, a mother and two daughters, with the younger daughter taking up a lot of the parents' time and the older one feeling neglected. I was the older sister. I've also past dealt with poor self esteem issues and anorexia. This is why I feel like I relate very well with Amelia. This also made me hate Charlotte with a burning passion because she is a horrible mother and a horrible person to Amelia, I don't care if you argue with me but honestly that's just how it is. She is horrible and ignorant towards Amelia and even Sean cares more than she does. However, that doesn't prevent me from giving this book five stars because I did love it a lot. Like always Picoult's writing is flawless and the fun facts Willow kept spouting were really cute. Especially the one about people being harmed by toilets. The ending though, complete and utter tearjerker. In a sense, it reminded me a bit of My Sister's Keeper."
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Jin (5 out of 5 stars)
About Jodi Picoult
Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-four stand-alone novels and three series, through the genres of fiction, romance, young-adult romance, mystery, and science fiction. My Sister’s Keeper won the American Library Association’s Margaret Alexander Edwards Award. She was awarded the 2003 New England Book Award for her entire body of work and a lifetime achievement award from the Romance Writers of America. She studied creative writing at Princeton University and received her masters from Harvard. Visit her website at JodiPicoult.com.
About the Narrators
Cassandra Morris has received critical acclaim for her voice-over work from Publishers Weekly and AudioFile magazine, earning a dozen Earphones Awards and twice been a finalist for the prestigious Audie Award for best narration. Her voice has also been heard on television in commercial campaigns and numerous Nickelodeon and Disney products. She is the voice of many cartoon characters, including Leo and Luna in Yu-Gi-Oh, Carrie in Barbie: A Fairy Secret, Nathan in Pokémon, and Lola in Angelo Rules.
Celeste Ciulla is an accomplished actress and voice-over artist based in New York City. For her stage performances, she has received the 2010 Lunt–Fontanne Fellowship and the Callaway Award. She is also an Earphones Award–winning narrator.
Alma Cuervo is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and a stage actress and singer who has also performed in film and television. She holds an MFA in acting from the Yale School of Drama, from which she graduated in 1976 alongside Meryl Streep. She starred in the role of Madame Morrible in the first national tour of Wicked.
Jessica Almasy (she, her) is an actress, theater teacher, and award-winning audiobook narrator. She has recorded over eighty titles, including the Earphones Award–winning Clementine series and Operation Yes. She is the winner of two Audie Awards and several AudioFile Earphones Awards.
James Colby is an actor and Earphones Award–winning audiobook narrator.
Gabra Zackman is an actress, author, and narrator who has won several AudioFile Earphones Awards. She was educated at Northwestern University. A classically trained actress, she has appeared in theaters all over the country as well as on film and television.