Rating: 
Summary: An impressive debut
Review: I've only read one other book by Jodi Picoult (Plain Truth) that I absolutely loved, so I wasn't sure what I would think reading her debut novel. Most authors get increasingly better and more honed writing skills with each novel, so I wasn't expecting Songs of the Humpback Whale to live up to my Plain Truth expectations. However, even though I still liked Plain Truth better (gripping and compelling), Jodi Picoult's debut effort was nothing short of wonderful.Unique in its telling, Songs of the Humpback Whale portrays a woman, Jane Jones, whose marriage to Dr. Oliver Jones plays second-fiddle to his lucrative career as a San Diego marine biologist. The fact that Oliver won't be around to share in his daughter, Rebecca's, 15th birthday, strikes a nerve with Jane, and after a devastating argument, Jane and Rebecca are in the station wagon preparing for a cross-country escape to Jane's brother, Joley, in Massachusetts. Interesting people are met along the way as Joley's letters waiting in different post offices assists Jane's and Rebecca's journey. But the most surprising is what awaits for Jane and Rebecca once they arrive in Massachusetts. Songs of the Humpback Whale is a novel told in five different perspectives. What is unique, however, is Rebecca's tale, which is told from end to beginning. Sounds confusing, but after a few of her chapters, the reader will be resting comfortably in the story. Songs is an omnipotent tale with awakenings around every corner. I highly recommend this book to all Jodi fans -- no courtroom drama here, but fascinating nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: An impressive debut
Review: I've only read one other book by Jodi Picoult (Plain Truth) that I absolutely loved, so I wasn't sure what I would think reading her debut novel. Most authors get increasingly better and more honed writing skills with each novel, so I wasn't expecting Songs of the Humpback Whale to live up to my Plain Truth expectations. However, even though I still liked Plain Truth better (gripping and compelling), Jodi Picoult's debut effort was nothing short of wonderful. Unique in its telling, Songs of the Humpback Whale portrays a woman, Jane Jones, whose marriage to Dr. Oliver Jones plays second-fiddle to his lucrative career as a San Diego marine biologist. The fact that Oliver won't be around to share in his daughter, Rebecca's, 15th birthday, strikes a nerve with Jane, and after a devastating argument, Jane and Rebecca are in the station wagon preparing for a cross-country escape to Jane's brother, Joley, in Massachusetts. Interesting people are met along the way as Joley's letters waiting in different post offices assists Jane's and Rebecca's journey. But the most surprising is what awaits for Jane and Rebecca once they arrive in Massachusetts. Songs of the Humpback Whale is a novel told in five different perspectives. What is unique, however, is Rebecca's tale, which is told from end to beginning. Sounds confusing, but after a few of her chapters, the reader will be resting comfortably in the story. Songs is an omnipotent tale with awakenings around every corner. I highly recommend this book to all Jodi fans -- no courtroom drama here, but fascinating nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: A Novel in Five Voices
Review: Jane Jones impulsively decides to take her daughter Rebecca leave her husband, renowned marine biologist Dr. Oliver Jones, after an argument in which his passion for the whales he studies once again places his family in the background. Jane lashes out at Oliver and strikes him on the face and she is so horrified at her violent streak that she bolts from their house in San Diego with nothing but her daughter and a handful of clothes. She fears she has become just like her abusive, violent father. After driving aimlessly for a while, Jane stops and calls her brother Joley who works on an apple farm in Massachusetts. Jane and Joley are soul-mates and best friends, and he guides her across the country in a series of letters which are sent to post offices in towns that he thinks she should stop in. The book is told through the voices of Oliver, Jane, Rebecca, Joley and eventually Sam, the owner of the apple farm. Jane and Rebecca share many adventures and soul-searching conversations while on the road while Jane tries to fathom what has gone wrong during their 15 year marriage. She was so in love with Oliver when she first met him at age 15 and married him at age 20, but now he seems only to care about his whales and his career. He barely knows his daughter, and has been out of the country for 7 or her 14 birthdays. As Jane reveals to Joley, "I want to be able to catch myself in the act of being one hundred percent alive." Oliver pursues them across the country, and eventually realizes how important his family is to him. When Jane and Rebecca finally reach Massachusetts they both fall in love with men at the apple farm, but Rebecca's first love dies a tragic death. The suspense of whether Jane will go back to Oliver or stay with Sam is maintained until nearly the end of the book. "Songs of the Humpback Whale" is a remarkable first work from novelist Jodi Picoult. The characters are painted vividly, and you become so involved in their lives that you don't want the book to end. The descriptions of the whales and how and why they sing are also fascinating. However, the literary tactic of having Rebecca tell her story backwards is confusing and gives much of the suspense of the novel too early. At one point I thought that I had misplaced my bookmark because I felt I was reading the exact same passage again.
Rating: 
Summary: A GREAT STORY
Review: Picoult is one of my favorite authors. This is her first book. I liked the style in which she wrote it, letting all the characters have a voice in the story, it is a good way to really get to know the characters, where they are going, and what they are thinking. She has a real knack for dialogue, and is a very talented writer... this is a must read!
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: This book is written in five voices. Each character has a his own "voice" or chapter that was actually written and his/her thoughts were written down as the writer is telling the story.
The story is about a woman named Jane and she is married to Oliver Jones who is a profession of oceanology and he specializes in humpback whales. He studies them so much and goes on expeditions to study them that after 16 years the marriage starts to fail. Jane who has a childhood of abuse, strikes Oliver during a fight, and flees with their child, Rebecca who is 15 years old. Jane calls her brother Joley who is working on an apple orchard in New England and tells him what happens, Joley sends letters to specific post offices thru the country so Jane can travel with her daughter to seek refuge from her husband. When she gets to the apple orchard, she "falls in love" with the owner and then the husband finds her!
The book reads like a journal from these five people and how all
of this affects their life. Jane had some interesting things happen to her as she made her way across the country and the people she encountered along the way.
I recommend this to anyone.
Rating: 
Summary: not my favorite Picoult
Review: While still a good read, Songs of the Humpback Whale is far from my favorite Picoult. In this novel, Picoult uses a number of different points of view to tell the same story. While two of her voices (mother and daughter) are very effective, the others leave much to be desired adding little to the story and causing me to flip through to the next chapter. Very frustrating and confusing (although a good idea - it just didn't work here) was that one of the points of view (the daughter's) told the story from back to front joining up with the other storytellers somewhere near the end. All this accomplished was giving away the end at the beginning and confuing me so much that if I had really enjoyed the story I would have read it again to figure out what was going on.
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