H — HOUSE RULES written by Jodi Picoult; reviewed by Debi O’Neille

Published by Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster.

It might be a good idea not to read the Amazon reviews on this book before you give it the chance it deserves, and one you won’t regret giving. I skimmed a few reviews on HOUSE RULES before I read the book, though it wasn’t a question as to whether or not I was going to purchase it. The only question I had at the time was which Jodi Picoult book was I going to read next.

I have to admit, I sat up a little straighter as I read the reviews. Shocked, surprised and often dumbfounded. A number of readers ranted about there not being a satisfying ending. I couldn’t help but wonder, did they read the same ending I did? I found Picoult’s ending beyond satisfying.

I get it, though. Different readers, different opinions.

In my humble opinion, Picoult brings you into the family life of an 18-year-old man-boy with Asperger’s syndrome, Jacob Hunt, but also into the legal drama and courtroom action that decides his fate and causes his mother torment. He’s the main suspect in a murder. Being 18, the law expects him to speak for himself and defend himself. Make his own decisions. 

Yet, Jacob's Asperger’s kick's his intelligence aside and makes communication and comprehending or recognizing social cues as difficult for him as programming a computer would be for me (Anything beyond on/off switches confuses me). With that in mind, how can he be expected to aid in his own defense? And yet, with his high IQ, finding him legally incompetent to stand trial won’t happen.

HOUSE RULES may not hand the ending to you on a platter, but I didn’t feel I had to work for it either. It’s there, but you do have to think about the ending, which I believe is exactly why the author wrote it the way she did. After all, the story unfolds with miscommunication, misinterpretation and confusion at the heart of it. HOUSE RULES shows how misinterpreted statements by someone who believes he’s being perfectly clear can cause havoc. In Jacob’s mind, he told authorities and his family the truth all along.

It is when you understand Jacob’s way of thinking that you’ll understand how this nightmare came to be. Laying the book out the way she did, the author let us live Jacob’s confusion and frustration, and we got to live the same from the eyes of those he loves. This is not a book to skip over. Read the entire story. Think about the ending, as you live it in Jacob’s shoes, then in his mother’s shoes and his brother’s. You’ll no doubt hurt for Jacob and worry for him just as much as his family does. And you’ll worry for them.

Warning: do not read this book if you don’t think you can handle the stress of a trial or the stress of being a defendant, because trust me, Jodi Picoult takes you there and ties your hands so that you can do no more than these very real people of HOUSE RULES could do.

Happy reading!