Harvesting the Heart [Paperback]

Jodi Picoult (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Allen & Unwin (2003)
• ISBN-10: 1741142393
• ISBN-13: 978-1741142396
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (145 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,528,689 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up on Long Island with my parents and my little brother, the product of a ridiculously happy childhood. My mom says I've been writing as long as she remembers - my first masterpiece was "The Lobster That Was Misunderstood," at age 5. I honed my writing skills beyond that, one hopes, before I headed off to Princeton, where I wanted to work with living, breathing authors in their creative writing program. Mary Morris was my teacher/mentor, and I really do believe I wouldn't be where I am today if not for her guidance and expertise. I had two short stories published in SEVENTEEN magazine when I was in college. However, when I graduated, a desire to not eat ramen noodles exclusively and to be able to pay my rent led me to take a job on Wall Street (not a great idea, since I can't even balance my checkbook). When the stock market crashed in 1987, I moved to Massachusetts and over the course of two years, worked at a textbook publishing company, taught creative writing at a private school, became an ad copywriter, got a master's in education at Harvard, got married, taught at a public school, and had a baby. My first novel was published shortly after my son was born, and I've always said that the reason I kept writing is because it's so much easier than teaching English.

In fourteen years, I've published thirteen novels: Songs of the Humpback Whale, Harvesting the Heart, Picture Perfect, Mercy, The Pact, Keeping Faith, Plain Truth, Salem Falls, Perfect Match, Second Glance, My Sister's Keeper, Vanishing Acts, and the upcoming The Tenth Circle, this March. Two of my books (Plain Truth and The Pact) were made into Lifetime TV movies; Keeping Faith will be another. My Sister's Keeper is in development at New Line Cinema to be a feature film. And there isn't a single day that I don't stop and marvel at the fact that when I go to work, I get to do what I love the most.

My husband Tim and I live in Hanover, NH with our three kids, a dog, a rabbit, and the occasional donkey or cow.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

138 of 142 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Picoult's best work yet, June 9, 2001

By 

Diane "dianemax" (Newfoundland, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Harvesting the Heart (Paperback)

This is the fourth book that I've read by Jodi Picoult and it is my favorite so far. This is a beautifully written story about self-doubt, the chance to find yourself, and the bond that exists between a mother and child.

The novel begins in the present with Paige locked out of her own house pleading with her husband Nicholas to see their child,Max. The story continues from there, shifting from Paige's perspective to Nicholas'. We learn that Paige has been abandoned by her mother, then flees from her hometown after dealing with a traumatic incident at a young age. She soon falls in love with Nicholas, a soon to be doctor who's own star is on the rise. Paige is an artist at heart but abandons her own dream to help support the career of her husband. She soon becomes a mother herself and tries to be a loving one but doubts her ability to do so. She carries the burden of her mother's desertion. In order to stand on her own she has to go back to her past, to the mother who left her. From there she has to learn how to love.

This book differs from her others in that there is no mystery to be solved here, there is no court room scenes. There is just the tender story of two people, two souls that are meant to be together, and the journey that their lives take them on. Jodi has an incredible way with words and her storytelling here is absolutely superb. It is a book to be savoured.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another triumph for Picoult..., January 16, 2000

By 

"pennsy1" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Harvesting the Heart (Paperback)

I had initially read "The Pact", given to me by a friend, and absolutely loved the work of Jodi Picoult. I ordered "Harvesting the Heart", and read in less than two days. Another "could-not- put-it-down-until-I-knew-the- ending" type of book. The characters are real and believable, and you could picture them living next door to you. I, personally, am not a mother (yet!), but reading this book gave me insight into motherhood, marriage and love...and what they truly entail. The story of Paige and Nicholas is truth in fiction. And as with "The Pact", I did not want this book to end, but to continue on to see exactly what happens in the lives of these people who are dealing with emotions that many readers can connect with. A moving story of, simply, life...and definitely worth reading.

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What does it mean to be a mother?, December 22, 2005

By 

Karen Potts (Lake Jackson, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Harvesting the Heart (Paperback)

Paige and her Irish-Catholic father are deserted by her mother when she is 5 years old. She has dim memories of a woman who was at times a delightful and playful companion and at other times, a brooding and unhappy person. Paige doubts her self-worth and wonders what she did to drive her mother away. Despite the pain of being abandoned herself, she begins a pattern of running away from people and situations that are overwhelming to her. She wonders if it is her fate to become just like her mother. While working as a waitress in a diner, she meets Nicholas, a wealthy and charismatic medical student, who, amazingly, is interested in her. Their relationship flourishes, despite the objections of his aristocratic parents, and eventually they marry. Their early married life is idyllic, but eventually changes occur which make things unbearable for Paige. She reverts to her old habits and begins a search for her mother in an attempt to discover who she and her mother really are. As usual in a Jodi Picoult novel, the characters are finely drawn and the plot is gripping. This book "grabbed" me at the beginning and never let me go until the very last page.