Jodi Picoult specialises in books written around dilemmas and deep issues, and I have found her sometimes tedious when an issue is stretched beyond its elastic point. However, Plain Truth [ISBN 0 340 83547 8] is much better than some – it is not just suspenseful with a central mystery but the context – it is set in the Amish Community in Pennsylvania – makes it an interesting and absorbing read.
Jodi Picoult specialises in books written around dilemmas and deep issues, and I have found her sometimes tedious when an issue is stretched beyond its elastic point. However, Plain Truth [ISBN 0 340 83547 8] is much better than some – it is not just suspenseful with a central mystery but the context – it is set in the Amish Community in Pennsylvania – makes it an interesting and absorbing read.
A dead newly born baby is found in an Amish barn and shakes the community to its core. A police investigation soon reveals circumstantial evidence that Katie Fisher, an eighteen year old Amish girl, has just had a baby, and as forensic evidence reveals the baby was alive when it was born, it is suggested she killed her own baby. Ellie Hathaway, a friend of a friend of the family, a city lawyer, is prevailed upon to come and defend Katie, but has to stay in the community with Katy. The two themes – the dead baby and Katie’s refusal to admit she has had a baby- and Ellie’s tangled love life, are unravelled through the book.
|