So, after a brief stint into non-stop
Augusten Burroughs territory (which included re-reading a few of his books), I am back to my
Jodi Picoult reading. I figure I am just going to end up reading all her books before the year is out. Which doesn't make this blog seem very eclectic, but oh well.
It took me just the weekend to read
Mercy, but that's not saying much since it's been in my possession for months now. The book has two stories intertwined in it-the first, main story, is about a man named Jamie, who kills his wife suffering from Cancer. And it's not just the beginning of Cancer-this is full-blown, spread all over the body, radical mastectomy Cancer. His wife-with whom he shares a love most of us will never know-ask him to kill her. He doesn't take on the request lightly, but he eventually carries it out. We then go through the months leading up to the trial. The other story line has to do with Jamie's distant cousin, Cameron, and his wife Allie. Cameron meets a woman-Mia-and feels as if he's known her his whole life. He inevitably cheats on Allie with Mia.
The story with Jamie asks some good questions-could you love someone so much you would kill them? No worry of the consequences. Is that selfless or selfish? Did he do it because he loved her or because she wasn't the person he fell in-love with anymore? To be honest-if someone I loved dearly-say my sister-was in so much pain and wanted to end it-I believe I could. If I truly felt it was what she wanted-if she was in a hopeless situation (such as Jamie's wife, Maggie), then yes. I believe I could do it. Of course, that is all well in good in theory-much like abortion-we can all say what we would do in the theoretical-but when it comes to real life, really being in the situation, it's anybody's guess. I don't believe we can ever know ourselves well enough to know what we would do in those situations until they become a reality.
The story with Cameron, Allie, and Mia tie in with Jamie's story. Cameron loves Mia from the second he lays eyes on her-soul mates, so to speak. But he also loves her wife-her consistency, her un-wavering faith, HER love. As in most all affairs-Mia loves Cameron for who he is in his life with Allie and vice versa. If they were to run away, neither would be the person the fell in love with-would the relationship last?
Jamie makes a very poignant remark to Allie and we see it crop up throughout the story:
"You know it's never fifty-fifty in a marriage. It's always seventy-thirty, or sixty-forty. Someone falls in love first Someone puts someone else up on a pedestal. Someone works very hard to keep things rolling smoothly; someone else sails along for the ride"
This is one of the truest things I've ever read in a novel. Every relationship I have ever been in; every relationship I have ever seen-this rings true. I don't, however, think this is bad thing. As the person who loves "more", I realize that is wired in me. It makes me feel GOOD about the relationship-not more than 5 minutes ago Michael said to me "You know when you are the happiest-when you are taking care of me." He is 100% correct.
As with all of Picoult's novel-there is much to consider-to think about. She writes about societies taboos-and makes you consider it from a real life and human perspective.
I wouldn't have it any other way.
