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Small Great Things: A Novel (Hardcover)

Small Great Things: A Novel By Jodi Picoult Cover Image
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Jodi Picoult always grabs you on the very first page and pulls you through her novels at a fierce pace.  She takes topics that can be sensitive to talk and write about and tackles them in a way that makes you stop and think deeply about everyday actions and their consequences.         

This book is no different.  When a newborn baby of a young, white supremacist couple goes into cardiac arrest with an African American nurse nearby (who has been instructed previously by the hospital not to handle the baby), everyone’s actions are scrutinized.  Or are they?   

— Lori

Jodi Picoult is an author I put on the back burner for awhile. However, I was overwhelmed when I picked up this book! Picoult does not shy away from the harsh reality that racism still is a problem decades after people like Martin Luther King Jr., Nina Simone, and so many others advocated for equality. Small Great Things is unlike like any other book I have read by Picoult. This book made me feel angry, proud, and empathetic. It's on the cover, this is by far, "the most important book Picoult has ever written.

— Ebony

October 2016 Indie Next List


“Picoult can be relied upon to find the themes that are most important to our national conversation and then to explore them with wit, warmth, and skill. In Small Great Things, she illuminates the racial divide in our country through the vivid stories of a black nurse, a white supremacist, and the public defender who intervenes when the worst happens. This excellent, timely novel is sure to be loved by Picoult's fans and is certain to create new ones.”
— Michael Herrmann (W), Gibson's Bookstore, Concord, NH

Description


#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • With richly layered characters and a gripping moral dilemma that will lead readers to question everything they know about privilege, power, and race, Small Great Things is the stunning new page-turner from Jodi Picoult.

SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE

“[Picoult] offers a thought-provoking examination of racism in America today, both overt and subtle. Her many readers will find much to discuss in the pages of this topical, moving book.”—Booklist (starred review)

Ruth Jefferson is a labor and delivery nurse at a Connecticut hospital with more than twenty years’ experience. During her shift, Ruth begins a routine checkup on a newborn, only to be told a few minutes later that she’s been reassigned to another patient. The parents are white supremacists and don’t want Ruth, who is African American, to touch their child. The hospital complies with their request, but the next day, the baby goes into cardiac distress while Ruth is alone in the nursery. Does she obey orders or does she intervene?

Ruth hesitates before performing CPR and, as a result, is charged with a serious crime. Kennedy McQuarrie, a white public defender, takes her case but gives unexpected advice: Kennedy insists that mentioning race in the courtroom is not a winning strategy. Conflicted by Kennedy’s counsel, Ruth tries to keep life as normal as possible for her family—especially her teenage son—as the case becomes a media sensation. As the trial moves forward, Ruth and Kennedy must gain each other’s trust, and come to see that what they’ve been taught their whole lives about others—and themselves—might be wrong.

With incredible empathy, intelligence, and candor, Jodi Picoult tackles race, privilege, prejudice, justice, and compassion—and doesn’t offer easy answers. Small Great Things is a remarkable achievement from a writer at the top of her game.

Praise for Small Great Things

Small Great Things is the most important novel Jodi Picoult has ever written. . . . It will challenge her readers . . . [and] expand our cultural conversation about race and prejudice.”The Washington Post

“A novel that puts its finger on the very pulse of the nation that we live in today . . . a fantastic read from beginning to end, as can always be expected from Picoult, this novel maintains a steady, page-turning pace that makes it hard for readers to put down.”San Francisco Book Review

About the Author


Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-five novels, including Small Great Things, Leaving Time, The Storyteller, Lone Wolf, Sing You Home, House Rules, Handle with Care, Change of Heart, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister’s Keeper. She is also the author, with daughter Samantha van Leer, of two young adult novels, Between the Lines and Off the Page. Picoult lives in New Hampshire with her husband and three children.

Praise For…


Small Great Things is the most important novel Jodi Picoult has ever written. . . . It will challenge her readers . . . [and] expand our cultural conversation about race and prejudice.”The Washington Post
 
“A novel that puts its finger on the very pulse of the nation that we live in today . . . a fantastic read from beginning to end, as can always be expected from Picoult, this novel maintains a steady, page-turning pace that makes it hard for readers to put down. It also allows for conversations to be had and for people to sit back and look at their lives, actions (past and present) and wonder how they will move forward. This is a fantastic book not only because it addresses something that happens in America and around the world every day, but it also shows us that change is possible too.”San Francisco Book Review
 
“A gripping courtroom drama . . . Given the current political climate it is quite prescient and worthwhile. . . . This is a writer who understands her characters inside and out.”—Roxane Gay, The New York Times Book Review

Small Great Things embraces . . . empathy, hope and humility.”Newsday 

“[An] author at the top of her heart-rending game.”—The National

“A gripping read about an issue of urgency.”—The Vancouver Sun

“A book that needs to be read.”—The Detroit News
 
“Exciting and fast-paced.”New York Journal of Books 

 “[Picoult] offers a thought-provoking examination of racism in America today, both overt and subtle. Her many readers will find much to discuss in the pages of this topical, moving book.”Booklist (starred review)

“Powerful . . . revelations abound.”—The Free Lance-Star
 
“Picoult has outdone herself.”—St. Louis Post-Dispatch 
 
“A courageous and important work.”Minneapolis Star Tribune

“I couldn’t put it down. Her best yet!”New York Times bestselling author Alice Hoffman
 
“A compelling, can’t-put-it-down drama with a trademark [Jodi] Picoult twist.”Good Housekeeping
 
“It’s Jodi Picoult, the prime provider of literary soul food. This riveting drama is sure to be supremely satisfying and a bravely thought-provoking tale on the dangers of prejudice.”Redbook
 
“Jodi Picoult is never afraid to take on hot topics, and in Small Great Things, she tackles race and discrimination in a way that will grab hold of you and refuse to let you go. . . . This page-turner is perfect for book clubs.”Popsugar


Coverage from NPR



Product Details
ISBN: 9780345544957
ISBN-10: 0345544951
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: October 11th, 2016
Pages: 480
Language: English