Being Different is Perfectly Normal

Umika Tunuguntla 

Ms. Asuncion 

English 9 Honors, Block 2 

23 February 2016 

Being Different is Perfectly Normal  

Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult is about a girl named Willow O’Keefe who has a disease called osteogenesis imperfecta, which is when a person has weak or brittle bones that break easily. Her mother, Charlotte, files a lawsuit against her doctor on the terms of malpractice, which her father doesn’t support. In fact, Willow’s father testifies against Charlotte in court (Picoult 226). During the court case Charlotte claims that it was wrongful birth, due to the doctor not recognizing signs that appeared before. She says that only to win, though, and doesn’t mean it (Picoult 150). I think what Charlotte did was wrong and I don’t support her view. She lies about not wanting Willow, so that she can get money for Willow’s future needs as a disabled person. Doing that could have negative effects on Willow psychologically making her think that her parents don’t care about her. I feel like even though Charlotte had a good reason she shouldn’t have filed a wrongful birth lawsuit because she said things on the stand that could potentially emotionally hurt her daughter. 

 There are a few aspects in this books that relate to some stories that we have read in class this year. In the book, Willow is a young girl who is disabled and can’t do many things other kids her age do like playing sports (Picoult 232). She is, though, extraordinarily smart for her age as she knows a variety of information. This results in her not having any friends, and her classmates don’t talk to her much either (Picoult 260). In All Summer in a Day Margot doesn’t have any friends either because students don’t believe her facts about the sun. Willow and Margot are similar characters because they are both different in the way they think, and don’t fit in with others.  

I would recommend Handle with Care to young adults. This book is also recommended for adults because it is a higher-level book which contains concepts including law and medical terms which are very accurate and detailed. I really liked the story and plot line of this book because it was realistic. I was especially interested in this book because of the real-life situations and diverse topics that Jodi Picoult included. Some topics include adoption, divorces, and life in the perspective of teenagers.  

Overall, “Handle with Care” was a book full of twists, heart breaking moments, and delightful surprises which all revolved around the story of a unique character.  

Works Cited 

Picoult, Jodi. Handle with Care. New York: Atria Books, 2009. Print.