Rating: 4.5/10
Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. By age thirteen, she has undergone countless surgeries, transfusions, and shots so that her older sister, Kate, can somehow fight the leukemia that has plagued her since childhood. The product of preimplantation genetic diagnosis, Anna was conceived as a bone marrow match for Kate -- a life and a role that she has never challenged...until now. Like most teenagers, Anna is beginning to question who she truly is. But unlike most teenagers, she has always been defined in terms of her sister -- and so Anna makes a decision that for most would be unthinkable, a decision that will tear her family apart and have perhaps fatal consequences for the sister she loves.
Summary by Goodreads.com
This book was not my favourite by any means for a variety of reasons, I gave it a rating of 4.5 merely because it deserves some literary credit, the concept of the novel is interesting and the style of writing is distinctive, however, I believe it was this that led to its downfall. The novel is written as a series of days, giving practically everyone in the Fitzgerald family (and more) their take on the day. This became frustrating and deviated away from the main plot line in so many places that the subplots devalued the original story. The most frustrating chapters of the entire story were that of Sara Fitzgerald, the emphatic mother of Anna, Kate, and Jesse. Completely blind sighted by Kate's condition, she barely notices the existence of her other children and drives me crazy with her self centered ideas and opinions that I almost loathed to see her name written on the page. I found myself dumbfounded at the many unproductive, and certainly unnecessary plot twists, reading the book to its finish merely because I had a peaked curiosity for perhaps one of the most minor details in the book, (the reason behind the presence of Alexander's dog.)
Despite having quite a large fanbase, a film based on its plot and a few rare 'sweet moments' I could not see myself recommending the book at all with a free conscience.
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