"Nineteen Minutes"

I hadn't intended to blog about Nineteen Minutes, but I found that the plot of this book has been on my mind lately. In Picoult's novel, 19 minutes is how long it takes for Peter Houghton to lay siege on his high school with four guns and to kill 10 people in a school shooting. Peter's story is a story we've heard before--a social outcast, obsessed with heavy metal music and video games, can't handle being bullied any longer, so he fights back the only way he thinks he can--with guns. The characters consist of the stereotypical jocks, nerds, beauty queens, ignorant teachers, and busy parents, but they are well defined; we come to understand each one's point of view. As in most of her novels, Picoult gives equal treatment to all sides, and I felt sympathy for the shooter as well as for his victims.

I think this story has been on my mind because of the many hours I've spent lately as a substitute teacher. As I watch the kids at school, I wonder how they feel about their peers and what they will become in the future. I, myself, have not witnessed any repeated bullying of one particular child, but I can't help but ask myself, "What am I not seeing?" Bullying must go on at my children's school, but I don't know if I can do anything to help if I never see it.

I enjoy Jodi Picoult's exploration of controversial social issues in her novels. A few of my friends have said that her books are too sad to read, and I must agree that her books can be sad. I appreciate how the books make me think about changes I can make in my life and how they always seem to offer a glimmer of hope for the future. I still think that My Sister's Keeper is my favorite Picoult novel, but I would definitely recommend this one as well.