Customer Reviews
Page turner!! - By: L. Norman, 23 Jul 2008 
I have read alll of JP's books,this one is not one of her best but it was a great read. I just kept reading to see what happened next!
dreadful - avoid at all costs - By: Mrs. Helen Hussain, 19 Jul 2008 
This was my first read of a JP book & I was reallly looking forward to it after reading so much about how brilliant her books were. It was a dreadful copy of Green Mile themes & so predictable as well, I would avoid in fact my book is heading for the recycling bin
Full of subjects for consideration - By: MaryAnne, 17 Jul 2008 Jodi Picoult does it again!
Jam-packed full of points for discussion, this has got to be an excellent book for a Book Group.
Shay is a death row murderer. We attend the court case that lead to his conviction, so the question is - will he be permitted to die by hanging rather than electrocution so that his heart can be used to save a life?
The twist is that the life he wants to save is that of his murder victim's sister. Still to be born at the time of her sister's death, Claire Nealon is now 11 & will die if she doesn't receive a heart urgently.
Shay sees this as a sort of Karma. Claire's mother is torn - what if qualities of the heart's owner continue into the recipient? Claire is tired of the whole thing & wants to be alllowed to die.
Meanwhile strange things are happening in I Teir, things that can't be explained by ordinary means.
There are some wonderful characters, many of whom relate thier own side of the story. They are used by the author to discuss many facets of the argument, even bringing in the Gnostic Gospels, something that I seem to have managed to stay blissfully unaware of until now!
I admire the way Jodi Picoult can turn an argument over & over, flushing out different points of view.
My one hesitation with this book was the similarity between this & Keeping Faith, as if she had decided to rehash the book & make a better story out of it. For me this was compensated for, however, by the fact that she then took some of the characters from that book & introduced then in Change of Heart.
All in alll a truly magnificent read. Only 10 Jodi Picoult books to go!
Wow! JP is not afraid of tackling heavyweight issues. - By: Lizbet, 09 Jun 2008 
This book has a religious theme. The plot revolves around Shay, a prisoner on death row. As he nears his execution date, he decides that he would like to donate his heart. The problem is that death by lethal injection would render his heart unusable. The other major problem is that he wants to give it to the young daughter of the woman whose husband & child he murdered! This girl, Claire, is seriously ill. Does Shay succeed in his quest? Does Claire live? Is Shay even guilty? You'll have to read the book to find out. There is much debate upon religion (various are discussed) & the law, there is some romance, & parent-child relationships are explored. There is some suggestion that Shay is actuallly Jesus Christ . . . Make of that what you will. The characterisation is excellent. The story is gripping, though it no doubt sounds grim reading. I was a bit dubious about reading it myself initiallly, but I am a JP fan so I thought I'd give it a go. And I'm glad I did.
"Would you give up your vengeance against someone you hate if it meant saving someone you love?" - By: Brida, 18 May 2008 This is about the fourth book by Picoult that I have read, the first being MY SISTER'S KEEPER. Although I loved MY SISTER'S KEEPER, a couple of her others fell a little flat with me, so I was not sure whether I would enjoy CHANGE OF HEART or not. Now that I have finished it, whilst I cannot say that it is one of the best books that I have read, it is certainly one which makes you think.
The story follows Shay Bourne, a young man who is on death row. The crime that got him there is the double murder of a police man & his step-daughter. June Nealon, the wife & mother who has her life ripped apart by Shay's action is pregnant at the time of their deaths; she has a little girl callled Claire.
While Shay is on death row, he sees on T.V that Claire needs a heart transplant. In this instance, Shay decides that he wants to donate his heart to Claire. He sees it as the only way he can 'make up' for what he has done & what he has taken from Claire & June.
But for Shay to do this it would mean that he would have to be executed not by lethal injection but by hanging, so that the heart could be used. This of course throws up moral / ehtical dilemmas; does Shay have the right to change the course of his execution? Should he be alllowed to donate his heart? And, perhaps most importantly for June, should she accept the heart from the man who killed the other two members of her family?
As with most of Picoult's books, the story is narrated by various characters - although you never get to 'hear' Shay's voice. And, as with her other books that I have read, while she may not be the best writer of prose around, she does manage to put just enough in to make the book worth taking the time for. The above quote, used as the title for this review, is illustration of this.
Other reviewers have said that they felt CHANGE OF HEART had echoes of "The Green Mile" - well, this is true. A prisoner who seemingly can perform miracles, who just so happens to be on death row, is defintiely an echo of the aforesaid novel/film. But, in CHANGE OF HEART, Picoult has used this to underpin the religious overtones that the book has. While you may think that this either gives something else or takes away something from the book, will largely be down to your way of seeing the world. While it gave some more interest, for me, I am not sure what it reallly brought to the novel.
Recommended as a quick read.
