The Tenth Circle by Jodi Picoult

ISBN: 1-74114-693-3
Year Published: 2006

This is a novel about date rape, and also family background and relationships.
There are a few issues addressed here:
1. Date Rape
2. Childhood background/past history
3. Husband and wife relationship
4. Family relationship

The whole plot centers on this family; the Stones - Daniel (father), Laura (mother), Trixie (Daughter).

Story/Plot:Daniel had a disturbing past during his childhood and youth when he grew up in Alaska, and he was someone that Laura would never have imagined she would end up maried to one day. However, his charms won her heart and academician Laura was soon pregnant with his child.

When Trixie was born, Daniel doted on her so much that he was willing to give up his career just to take care of her at home while Laura strives to establish her career in the academics. It was perhaps his love for Trixie, or his excitement to be a father which is a new role for him, but I think it had something to do with his past whereby he wanted to make sure Trixie was brought up with love and attention.

Daniel was extremely talented in drawing and was approached by renowned comic companies to work for them. After years of pushing them away from his doorstep, he finally accepted a work-from-home job to enable him to continue to care for Trixie.

Trixie grew into a pretty and rebellious fourteen year old, who was going through a transition period following her breakup with her boyfriend, Jason Underhill.
Unable to get over the break up and how her boyfriend seemed to be moving on with another girl, Trixie took her best friend's advice to try to make him jealous at a party by seducing other guys in the school. Her plan probably succeeded and Jason seemed to still care for her as he shielded her from being taken advantage of.

The story takes a turn when Daniel found Trixie in the house at 4am, after the party and she claimed that she had been raped by Jason Underhill.
Trixie was sent to the hospital for examination, while her mother could not be contacted at that time as she was breaking up with her student boyfriend whom she spent the night with.

Trixie's accusations led to Jason Underhill losing his scholarship and was to be tried in court, but the whole school sided with Jason and nobody believed in Trixie except her own family. At the same time, her parents were undergoing a tough time with each other following the discovery of her mother's cheating on her father.

The story turned more complex when Jason's side of the story was revealed, and suddenly, there was a vague line between the truth and imagination.
The change of events also led to Daniel having to return to Alaska to confront his own past while mending his relationship with his wife and daughter.

As usual, I will not reveal too much, as there is suspense to what you will find as you read.

My opinion:Honestly, I find the story a little slow, despite the good plot. The story started slowly with Daniel and Trixie, and then climaxed a little after Trixie's party but it plummeted down again when it came to finding Trixie.
I find the whole plot intriguing but the direction of the story seemed to heading in so many different directions that it got a little more complex than entertaining.
I wouldn't say this is my favorite book from Picoult, as I preferred her other books.

I was kinda disappointed in the twist of the story, I would say, but there was a very good insight in the story which led to many thought provoking questions:
1. Does a woman take her husband for granted when he becomes a home husband while she pursues her career? Will there be pride and inferiority complex in the household?

2. Can the past truly be put behind you, just by running away from the place where you came from?

3. Will you believe and stand for your daughter, despite her reputation and disobedience, even when the whole world tells you otherwise?

4. What are the lengths that parents would take just to protect their child?

5. Giving up on career to care for a child - is it truly for the best? Does that mean that your child will not grow up on the negative side?

There are just so many issues addressed, and the above are just a few that ran through my mind when I read the book.

I may consider reading it a second time, and I do recommend it to parents who are close to their children as it explores on the changes when the child grows into a teenager and how they became strangers overnight.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

ISBN: 978-0-7475-9489-5
Year Published: 2003

Excerpt of the story from the back of the book:
1970s Afghanistan: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what will happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives. After the Russians invade and the family is forced to flee to America, Amir realises that one day he must return, to find the one thing that his new world cannot grant him: redemption.

Storyline:
This is a simple yet engaging story about the friendship of two boys and the perspective of a young boy who had to struggle with his own pride and guilt for his loyal friend. The story is set in the country of Afghanistan and touches the topics of political struggles and religious perspectives.

Amir and Hassan grew up together, and bonded like brothers since young. At a glance they may seem like they are similar to each other, but they are very different in their social background as Amir hails from a wealthy Pashtun family (considered as a higher class of people in Afghanistan) while Hassan is the son of the servant in Amir's home and a Hazara (a lower class group in the country due to their origin and are often slaves or servants to the upper class Pashtuns).

The story was divided into two parts; the childhood in 1970s and their adulthood in different countries.
The friendship between the two boys was the moving part in the whole story; where readers could feel the sincerity and genuity of Hassan's loyalty towards Amir who was a little doubtful and ashamed of being seen as close to his servant boy.
Amir was not exactly mean, but the author portrayed him as a boy struggling to find his own identity; thus having doubts and mixed feelings were a norm for growing boys.
At the same time, Amir had to fight for the affections of his own father, whom he fondly referred to as Baba, who seemed to prefer Hassan over him sometimes.

Amir was more inclined towards journalism and possess a rather gentle side and he knew that he would not be approved by his father who seemed to think that a man should grow up to be a man; to be brave and daring in their life. His only bet was on his hobby; kite-fighting and he aimed to win the kite-fighting tournament to impress his father and win his affections. He had the help and support from his best friend, Hassan and with God's will, he won the tournament.
The joyful Amir then sent Hassan to collect his kite but when Hassan was not back after a while, he went in search for Hassan and he witnessed an incident which changed their lives forever. (It will be a spoiler if I share it here, so I'd recommend reading the book:)

The story continues where the boys start to drift apart; particularly Amir, who, due to the suffering of his own guilt, shied away from Hassan and one day, Hassan and his father, Ali, decided to take leave, leaving his Baba in a devastated state.

The story then shifts to the Russian invasion and how Amir and his Baba fled the country to America where Amir studied and established his career. However, there is always the incident which affected him and he knew that Afghanistan will always be his home. When Amir met up with an old family friend one day, he discovered a shocking truth which forced him to make a decision to redeem himself from his long-lasting guilt from the incident which happened during his childhood.

My opinion:
It was a brilliant story, and a most captivating one as the author plays with the simple entanglement of two boys' friendship and turned it into an authentic piece of story. One would feel for Amir; as the main protagonist struggled to redeem himself and in the meantime, search for his own identity away from pleasing his father.
The story of betrayal, friendship, guilt, and pride all rolled into one and using the unique background of Afghanistan, it is a promising read.
I won't reveal too much here but I highly recommend this book not just for the story, but for the understanding of the social background of the land of Afghanistan.

A recommended read, I must say.
I enjoyed reading this book, and I finished the book during my flight!