"19 minutes" by Jodi Picoult

I just finished reading this amazingly riveting novel, and I was struck by how much of the book's content can be related to the topics discussed in class. One of the main themes of this book is bullying, and most of the characters unveiled are teenagers. The reader is taken back in time and discovers the horrors associated with being bullied, and learns of the everlasting effects that it has on its victims. While this is a fiction novel, it raises the argument that the effects of one single act of bullying, harassing, or tormenting can be as devastating and detrimental on the victim as an act of sexual assault. In this novel, we get to know Peter, a compassionate, emotional and sensitive boy, whom his mother describes as having "all of the desireable characteristics of a 35 year old man". The only trouble she said, was getting him to that point so he and his peers could realize it. We travel with Peter from birth through age 18, and we empathize with him because he is the kid who never fit in; the kid who is the target of physical, verbal and emotional harassment; the kid who shot 10 people dead at his high school one morning. We begin to understand how a boy could be capable of executing such a horrific act; how anyone could be capable of executing such a horrific act. We learn of the events that took place that fateful morning through the lens of a judge, a defense attorney, a detective, a mother, a father, a best friend, a bully, and Peter himself. This book is full of gray areas just itching to be discussed. How far would you go to be popular? How far would you go to avoid being the "Peter" of your school? How far does bullying go? Who stops it? Are Peter's parents to blame? Is the school?