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From that Time-Life card, I learned the basics about elephants. They were the largest land animals on the planet, sometimes weighing more than six tons. They ate 300-400 pounds of food each day. They had the longest pregnancy of any land mammal—22 months. They lived in breeding herds, led by a female matriarch, often the oldest member of the group. She was the one who decided where the group went every day, when they took a rest, where they ate and where they drank. Babies were raised and protected by all the female relatives in the herd, and traveled with them, but when males were about thirteen years old, they left—sometimes preferring to wander on their own, and sometimes gathering with other males in a bull group. I really enjoyed this book. I anxiously awaited it as I think it was released later than normal. Then once I had it I was saving it because I hate when it's over and I have to wait for her next book. However, this week I gave in and once I started I couldn't save it anymore. In the end I thoroughly enjoyed this book, shedding a few tears along the way. Actually I grew to love and fully appreciate the story the more I thought about it and connected more of the dots in the days after finishing it. The story is told alternately through the voices of Jenna Metcalf, Serenity Jones, Virgil Stanhope and Alice Metcalf. The glue that binds this literary journey is motherly love for her daughter and ... New evidence in hand and with a new sense of hopefulness, Jenna seeks out Virgil Stanhope, a private investigator who was a detective in the Boone Police Department involved in the botched investigation of Alice Metcalf’s disappearance a decade earlier. Virgil is a broken man, plagued by troubles with the bottle, but in the end agrees to work with Jenna and Serenity to find the missing Alice Metcalf and end his despondency over his incompetence and failure in the initial investigation.
Jodi Picoult · Leaving Time (2014) Jodi Picoult · Leaving Time (2014)
The Boston Globe notes, "Picoult does her homework, and her main themes are thoroughly researched and engrossingly presented. With this new novel, 'Leaving Time,' her fans will not be disappointed." [16] Desperate to find the truth, Jenna enlists two unlikely allies in her quest. The first is Serenity Jones, a psychic who rose to fame finding missing persons—only to later doubt her gifts. The second is Virgil Stanhope, a jaded private detective who originally investigated Alice’s case along with the strange, possibly linked death of one of her colleagues. As the three work together to uncover what happened to Alice, they realize that in asking hard questions, they’ll have to face even harder answers. This is when Jenna realizes she is actually dead, but caught in the middle of the world and spirit dimension. Virgil also clues in that he is a ghost. When he had failed to solve Alice's disappearance the first time, he tried to commit suicide, but didn't know it worked. All these years Jenna and Virgil thought they were alive. Both of them were able to move onto the spirit realm, after teaching Serenity that she hadn't lost her psychic gift. Picoult’s novel explores grief, memory, and motherhood through the unlikely lens of elephant behavior... The pachyderms are as complex as the humans, making the journey memorable and poignant. His YING....was a nice balance to the other female voices -YANG, though, and I did grow to like the old fart. His heart was as big as gold. Actually all the characters have redeeming qualities in this novel.
I really loved the story lines with the elephants. I give the elephants 5 stars, but I don't know enough about elephants to know how much of what Picoult writes is factual and how much is anthropomorphism. The blurb of the book speaks of this book being about the mother/daughter bond. I get that with the elephants - completely demonstrated with the examples from the elephant world. I'm guessing Picoult wanted the experiences of the elephants and of Alice/Jenna to be reflective of each other but it doesn't really happen. For us to believe in a bond between Alice and Jenna that transcends death we need to see that loving bond. Instead, we see Alice regularly dump Jenna on others, or leave her alone, so her mother can attend to the elephants or . The problem is we don't see Alice spend any quality time with Jenna or show that she loves her. We see far more love and concern for the elephants. But that is not all- Alice is also expecting Gideon's baby. When Nevvie, Gideon's mother-in-law finds out that Gideon and Alice are going to run away with Jenna, Nevvie tells him he hopes that Gideon gets everything he deserves. Her fear of abandonment was real. She acted strong and capable on the outside ....but protected her tender spots. One of the major themes ofLeaving Timeis loss and how to cope with it. Discuss some of the ways the characters in this novel deal with their losses. Do you identify with any of these coping mechanisms more than others? How do you approach loss? Karen Campbell (November 9, 2014). " 'Leaving Time' by Jodi Picoult". The Boston Globe . Retrieved August 14, 2021.
Summary and reviews of Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult - BookBrowse Summary and reviews of Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult - BookBrowse
Jodi Picoult's Leaving Time features intertwining stories of past and present-day events related to an unsolved crime that separated a daughter from her mother. I adored the “past” events which focused primarily on the mother's post-doctoral study of elephant cognition. Learning about elephant behavior was my favorite part of the book, and I found it both heartbreaking and fascinating. The “present-day” events incorporated a mystery element investigated by an unlikely team of a discredited psychic, a washed up detective, and a thirteen year old. I don't have much knowledge about psychics or the ESP world in general, but I found this an interesting addition to the story. Tusk asked Jodi a few questions about her experiences with elephants while researching for Leaving Time. This newest Jodi Picoult left me a little dazed and confused. Picoult used to be one of my sure bets for a great read and no one quite wrote like her. This being said, I'm not really sure what direction Picoult has been going recently. Sempre que lemos um livro que até nem nos parece mau mas nos recorda outros anteriores , pescámos um peixe vulgarote, tipo sardinha ou carapau!
James Walton (2014). "Jodi Picoult, Leaving TIme - "A suspension of more-than-average belief" - Reader's Digest". Reader's Digest . Retrieved August 14, 2021.
Leaving Time - Wikipedia Leaving Time - Wikipedia
addendum: As much as I disliked this book, I would never want to spoil the ending or give away too much of the plot for any reader wanting to take it on. Please use a spoiler tag if you'd like to comment on anything that could ruin someone else's reading experience. I hate to delete comments (yes, even the mean ones...), but I will delete a comment if it contains a spoiler that is not hidden. Thanks!
Virgil grapples with helping Jenna when he suspects discovering the truth might be more painful to her than never knowing. Have you ever been in a situation where you knew a truth that it might hurt someone to hear? What did you do? Gideon confesses that there was an affair between himself and Alice, and when his wife, who had also worked with them, Grace, found out, she committed suicide. Best-selling, reliably entertaining, and thought-provoking Picoult's newest multifaceted novel is redolent with elephant lore that explores the animals' behavior when faced with death and grief, and combines a poignant tale of human loss with a perplexing crime story that delivers a powerhouse ending. It does not matter who you are or what kind of personal relationship you’ve forged with an elephant: Come between her and her calf, and she will kill you."
Leaving Time Series by Jodi Picoult - Goodreads Leaving Time Series by Jodi Picoult - Goodreads
I cried and cried when as in regular Pioult style she throws you for a loop! Just when I thought I had it all down and figured out, noooppee, I get shut down. I called a friend right away and told them to get this book! It is amazing! The storyline is so beautiful and adding the plight of elephants with information to learn more about these wonderful creatures is very moving. introducing me not only to the wonderful world of audiobooks ....(literally...as she gifted me two books), but to Rebecca Lowman .... ( always 'Annie' to me)... When we got to the zoo, I raced along the paths until I found myself standing in front of Morganetta the elephant.Boston Globe ...the writing and storytelling compelled the suspension of disbelief and acceptance of the unimaginable. And in the end an amazed and admiring gasp—‘I did not see that coming.’ NY Journal of Books Leaving Time is a 2014 novel by American writer Jodi Picoult. It is the twenty-third novel written by the author. The first edition was published on October 14, 2014, by Ballantine Books, an imprint of Random House. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] Plot summary [ edit ] Thirteen year old Jenna Metcalf is determined to find out what happened to her mother, Alice who disappeared from her life when she was just three years old. Alice was a scientist who studied elephants in Botswana, Africa from there she went to New England Elephant Sanctuary. Jenna was eleven when she started actively searching for her mother, but getting someone to help her search would come at a cost, so she started taking up babysitting jobs. Jenna had asked her grandmother for answers, but she wasn't giving anything away and as for Jenna's father he was catatonic in a psychiatric hospital, so Jenna knew she wouldn't get any answers from him. After ten years of her mother going missing, Jenna sets out to find her mother with a retired detective and psychic. [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
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