This story is about a happy married couple whose daughter is born with osteogenesis imperfecta - a genetic bone disorder. There are different types of this disorder and the symptoms vary. From what I have read, since the collagen is produced in insufficient quantities, people from this disorder might suffer from loose joint, poor muscle tone, early loss of hearing in some children and they fracture/break their bones extremely easy. The family is completely devastated because their daughter, Willow, will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows and will have to live a lifetime of pain. The family struggles to pay all of Willow's medical expenses and one day, Willow's mother Charlotte thinks that she has found the answer to their financial problems. If she files and wins a 'wrongful birth' lawsuit against her doctor for not telling her ahead of time that her child would have this disorder, she can win enough money to provide Willow with the best of care, the best therapies, the best surgeries, etc. for the rest of her life. But she has to say that if her doctor had told her this, that she would have terminated the pregnancy. What a horrible thing to say, after your daughter has been born...to say "If my doctor had been more careful examining the ultrasound and had told me my child would have osteogenesis imperfecta, then I would have aborted." But Charlotte absolutely adores her daugher and she is just interested in the payout so that she can provide Willow with the best care. The whole time I was reading this book, my heart was in my throat. Each chapter is told by a different character and this only hurts your heart even more, because you can see how torn everyone is about the lawsuit. The book raises some very important points and questions:
-When you find out that the fetus in your womb will be disabled, at what point should your doctor be allowed to suggest termination?
-How disabled is too disabled???
-How far would you go...as a mother...as a father...to take care of someone you love?
-Could you lie to the people you love and to the court?
This is a very emotional book, and it raises some very important topics. As the reader reads through this book, they are challenged to face these questions head on.
Handle with Care, by Jodi Picoult
This story is about a happy married couple whose daughter is born with osteogenesis imperfecta - a genetic bone disorder. There are different types of this disorder and the symptoms vary. From what I have read, since the collagen is produced in insufficient quantities, people from this disorder might suffer from loose joint, poor muscle tone, early loss of hearing in some children and they fracture/break their bones extremely easy. The family is completely devastated because their daughter, Willow, will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows and will have to live a lifetime of pain. The family struggles to pay all of Willow's medical expenses and one day, Willow's mother Charlotte thinks that she has found the answer to their financial problems. If she files and wins a 'wrongful birth' lawsuit against her doctor for not telling her ahead of time that her child would have this disorder, she can win enough money to provide Willow with the best of care, the best therapies, the best surgeries, etc. for the rest of her life. But she has to say that if her doctor had told her this, that she would have terminated the pregnancy. What a horrible thing to say, after your daughter has been born...to say "If my doctor had been more careful examining the ultrasound and had told me my child would have osteogenesis imperfecta, then I would have aborted." But Charlotte absolutely adores her daugher and she is just interested in the payout so that she can provide Willow with the best care. The whole time I was reading this book, my heart was in my throat. Each chapter is told by a different character and this only hurts your heart even more, because you can see how torn everyone is about the lawsuit. The book raises some very important points and questions:
-When you find out that the fetus in your womb will be disabled, at what point should your doctor be allowed to suggest termination?
-How disabled is too disabled???
-How far would you go...as a mother...as a father...to take care of someone you love?
-Could you lie to the people you love and to the court?
This is a very emotional book, and it raises some very important topics. As the reader reads through this book, they are challenged to face these questions head on.
1 comentários:
Olá Di :)
Como te disse o outro dia também tenho esse livrinho por ler "Frágil" ... tenho de tirar estes livros das prateleiras :P
Beijinhos
Paula
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