Alex cormier alex is a supporting character in nineteen minutes, but she plays a huge role with one of the main characters, josie. Of course, not every plot twist is as dramatic as this, but i love it when an author does a nifty bit of sleightofhand magic. Nineteen minutes the characters involves josie cormier, a female protagonist, peter houghton, the male antagonist, alex cormier, who is josies mother, lacy houghton, peters mother and a great friend to alex, and patrick durchame, the detective. Josie lies in the whole book saying she forgets what happened, but at the end she admits to shooting matt to try and salvage peters case. Character analysis nineteen minutes by jodi picoult. The modernday settings of the novel jumps back in forth from the past to the present but everything leads back to the. Posted in books, discussion, reading tagged books dicussion goodreads jodi picoult nineteen minutes reading leave a comment.
I love it when a book makes me want to run up to the first person i can find and say, holy crap, you need to read this book right now. Jodi picoult received an ab in creative writing from princeton and a masters degree in education from harvard. The mass shooting takes place at sterling high, in new hampshire, and lasts for the nineteen minutes of the books titular namesake. Megan rising action peter had enough of getting put down and bullied by people. The friendship between josie and peter was not detailed enough at all, we didnt get an insight into peters thoughts and the idea that josie would accept her friends bullying just for the sake of popularity. Sterling is a small, ordinary new hampshire town where nothing ever happens until the day its complacency is shattered by a shocking act of violence.
Sterling, new hamshire was just an ordinary, quiet american town until the day peter houghton walked into his school and shot. Nineteen minutes by jodi picoult chapter summaries. Nineteen minutes the characters involves josie cormier, a female protagonist, peter houghton, the male antagonist, alex cormier, who is josies mother, lacy houghton, peters mother and a great friend to alex, and patrick durchame, the detective of the police force where also alex is deeply in love with. Over 12 million copies of jodi picoults books have been sold worldwide. Peter houghton, the seventeenyearold school shooter, changes the lives of many people on march 6, 2007. As always with picoult, the issues are never black and white and the plot is never quite as simple as it might at first seem. Peter houghton didnt fit in at sterling high, and he. Posted on september 24, 2015 september 24, 2015 by maschcod000. The book nineteen minutes by jodi picoult consists of 451 pages with the publishing company of atria books. A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy.
She begins the book on the day of the massacre, when we barely know any of the people involved though patrick ducharme, the detective who is one of the first on the scene, is a carryover character from one of her earlier books, perfect match. Jodi picoult has tackled in the novel nineteen minutes a highly controversial and difficult topic. Twistaplot is a series of childrens gamebooks, that were published by scholastic from 1982 to 1985. What is the novel nineteen minutes by jodi picoult about. Her 14th novel, nineteen minutes, went to number one on the new york times bestseller list for fiction, and fans, if not all literary critics, will be pleased to know there is definitely more to come. The book follows the general flow of a picoult novel. Its exciting, tragic, humorous, and surprising all at the same time. Nineteen minutes is jodi picoults most recent novel, and i predict it will become her best seller to date. Nineteen minutes is enough time to become disenchanted with an author. The rest of the book bounces between flashback and the present.
This is a good quote because it has a reporter saying it has a good plot twist, and also it has good character development. Top 10 twists in fiction crime fiction the guardian. It focuses on the events leading up to and following a high school shooting. Filled with unexpected turns and unpredictable stories. Picoult did a wonderful job of enticing the reader with a fastpaced plot, complicated characters. In a final twist in the novel, it is revealed that josie shot matt in the stomach the. The students of sterling high have gone to school together since day one. Chapter summaries of nineteen minutes by jodi picoult are not meant to replace reading the book. Nineteen minutes centers around a small town in new hampshire, rocked by an act of violence. Nineteen minutes begins in 2007 in the town of sterling, new hampshire. In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn, color your hair, watch a third of a hockey game. The midpoint plot twist made my jaw drop the first time i read it, and the second half of the book continues to spiral with several revelations about how tightly wound sue and mauds lives are to. The book follows the general flow of a picoult novel, with plot twist after plot twist scattering the pages.
A great book for long trips and lazy days at the beach. Picoult writes with knowledge and depth, subtly drawing in the reader until theyve realized theyve turned more pages than theyve thought. Jodi picoult nineteen minutes book trailer youtube. March 6, 2007 a journalstyle entry opens the narrative and appears before the first chapter. Its a middletwist rather than an endtwist, and the character responsible spends much of the novel afterward boasting about it. Sometimes, it doesnt even take the reading of an entire book, though i made it. Stine, who would go on to write the fear street series and the goosebumps series, which in turn spawned the gamebook spinoff series give yourself goosebumps.
The chapters in this book are named for time in relation to a school shooting at sterling high school. Peter and josie are very close friends as small children and really best friends. Rich with psychological and social insight, nineteen minutes is a riveting, poignant, and thoughtprovoking novel that has at its center a haunting question. On peters first day of middle school, drew pushes peter and calls him a retard. Nineteen minutes peters death showing of 30 goodreads. Feb 05, 2008 in nineteen minutes the twist was apparent from quite early on and to me seemed rather unrealistic given the information in the book. The novel takes you back to the era of the mid2000s.
Nineteen minutes is a stimulating novel full of reason, passion, and even some courtroom lingo. The remaining books were written by various authors including louise munro foley. Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors. Sometimes, it doesnt even take the reading of an entire book, though i made it all the way through jodi picoults nineteen. Many authors would have shied away from such subject matter and the type of research it required. She shot him because throughout the entire book, it describes how abusive matt was to josie. This novel follows the unfolding of a school shooting, including the events leading up to the incident and the aftermath of the incident. In nineteen minutes the twist was apparent from quite early on and to me seemed rather unrealistic given the information in the book. Feb 05, 2008 jodi picoult received an ab in creative writing from princeton and a masters degree in education from harvard. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist. Nineteen minutes is a harrowing, suspenseful narrative about a high school shooting and its aftermath. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Nineteen minutes nineteen minutes summary showing 14 of 4.
They are meant to serve as a study guide to help keep the many events in this novel straight. Matt royston josies boyfriend, who is a victim of the shooting mr. In the aftermath, the towns residents must not only seek justice in order to begin healing but also come to terms with the role they played in the. Mar 20, 2007 nineteen minutes is enough time to become disenchanted with an author. Jodi picoults latest topical novel, nineteen minutes, takes its title from. Peter is so excited for his first day of kindergarten that he cant sleep.
Mccabe peters teacher, who is a victim of the shooting courtney ignacio josies best friend when she becomes part of the popular group. Apr 11, 2017 i love it when a book makes me want to run up to the first person i can find and say, holy crap, you need to read this book right now. Any book recommendations for beating the isolation blues. She twisted her thick copper hair into a knot and anchored it at the base of her neck with. Nineteen minutes jodi picoult, 2007 examines a school shooting in a riveting. Mar 06, 2007 chapter summaries of nineteen minutes by jodi picoult are not meant to replace reading the book. Lacy peters mother is a midwife and assists alex josies mother deliver her baby girl. A teenage outcast goes on a shooting spree in his high school, and the survivors are left to determine if it was because they provoked him.
Nineteen minutes is the type of book that grabs on to you from the start, and doesnt let go until youve read every last word. The writer of the entry talks about not wanting to be mourned at their funeral, and that the person being addressed should not blame themselves, though the person being addressed does have a. The september 11 attacks on the world trade center take place, and alex and lacy pick up their kids from school, both reeling. The writer of the entry talks about not wanting to be mourned at their funeral, and that the person being addressed should not blame themselves, though the person being addressed does have a role in the writers. Told as a series of flashbacks from multiple points of view, nineteen minutes is a powerful read that kept this reader up until 3 am. He went after most the people who hurt him in some way. Nineteen minutes, is a thought provoking, poignant read that will run the reader through a gambit of emotions. Nineteen minutes summary from litcharts the creators of. As the story unfolds, picoult reveals secrets that bound both the youth community, and the adults of the town of sterling. Nineteen minutes 2007 is the fourteenth novel by the american author, jodi picoult.
The mass shooting takes place at sterling high, in new hampshire, and lasts for the nineteen minutes of the book s titular namesake. Nineteen minutes is how long it took the tennessee titans to sell out of tickets to the playoffs. Nineteen minutes jodi picoult read online free books. Sterling, new hampshire is a small town where everybody knows everybody. In fact, i love it so much i put together a list of 100 books with plot twists. If you love a good plot twist, this list is just what you need. Nineteen minutes is both a pageturner and a thoughtful exploration of popularity, power, and the social ruts that can define us in ways we may not wish to be defined. That said, what picoult has produced is a heartwrenching and highly realistic novel that captures the everyday trials of young people and shows how. Peter houghton didnt fit in at sterling high, and he knew it. It was such a shock to know that the book ends by peter killing himself.
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