Review: Small Great Things, by Jodi Picoult
Although this is her 24th published book, she initially wanted to address this subject early on in her writing career, but felt too inexperienced to do it justice until now, two decades later. Small Great Things, taken from a Reverend Dr Martin Luther King Jr quote, follows the case of experienced labour and delivery nurse Ruth Harrison, who happens to be black. She finds herself arrested for murder and involuntary manslaughter when a baby dies under her watch, following a routine hospital procedure – despite the baby’s white supremacist parents banning her from looking after their child.
As with Picoult’s other works, the story is seen through three different perspectives – that of Ruth, her lawyer and the child’s father. How Ruth’s situation and trial unfolds will make you cry, fill you with shock and disbelief, but above all, make you think about how the world is more than just black and white.
Published in hardback by Hodder & Stoughton, priced £14.99