House Rules is a book about an Autistic teen who’s obsessed with forensic analysis. It’s by Jodi Picoult, so of course it’s a tearjerker, but the story is twisted and turned through so many emotions, it is not only a tearjerker, but a happy story as well. The main character, Jacob Hunt, is diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of high-functioning autism, at the age of two, and the story is told mainly when he is an eighteen year-old. He lives with his mother and brother, Emma and Theo Hunt, and lives by a structured schedule, feeling comfortable only when all of his daily activities are planned. Any lack of structure or unexpected events cause him to feel anxious. Jacob is in love with his social skills teacher, and when she dies, allegedly at his hand, he is pulled into the world of courts and lawyers and harsh social situations.
The novel opens with Jacob setting up a crime scene (in which he is the victim) for his mother to solve. Jacob's need to engage in such activities, as well as his obsession with detail, often frustrates his mother and infuriates his brother Theo. Theo is frustrated that he can’t live a “normal” life, because both the lack of a father (his mother is divorced) and the amount of money that it costs to get Jacob all of the pills that he needs to survive means that he cannot have a Wii, or DSI, or Xbox. This pushes him to start breaking into homes, and stealing items, that he might not have the right components for, like a Wii game, but that he just knows their owners won’t care if they are gone. He breaks into a house that it being house-sat by Jess Ogilvy, Jacob’s social skills teacher, for a professor of hers while he is on vacation, and, unknowing that it is “her” house, proceeds to wreck it, and cause a commotion. Three hours later, Jess Ogilvy turns up dead, and all the clues point to Jacob Hunt. Since he is the prime suspect, he is thrown in jail, which he can’t handle, and then is put under house arrest, which he hates. His mother loses her job because of this, and she hires a lawyer, Oliver Bond, who has close to no experience in his career field.
Jodi Picoult really hit a home run on this one; the captivating storyline and the heart behind it are too bold not to notice. Critics and readers alike enjoyed this state-of-the-art novel about how such a simple thing as a disability can tear a family apart, and label someone as a criminal. I would recommend this for all teens over 15, because of the great story and moving plot.
The novel opens with Jacob setting up a crime scene (in which he is the victim) for his mother to solve. Jacob's need to engage in such activities, as well as his obsession with detail, often frustrates his mother and infuriates his brother Theo. Theo is frustrated that he can’t live a “normal” life, because both the lack of a father (his mother is divorced) and the amount of money that it costs to get Jacob all of the pills that he needs to survive means that he cannot have a Wii, or DSI, or Xbox. This pushes him to start breaking into homes, and stealing items, that he might not have the right components for, like a Wii game, but that he just knows their owners won’t care if they are gone. He breaks into a house that it being house-sat by Jess Ogilvy, Jacob’s social skills teacher, for a professor of hers while he is on vacation, and, unknowing that it is “her” house, proceeds to wreck it, and cause a commotion. Three hours later, Jess Ogilvy turns up dead, and all the clues point to Jacob Hunt. Since he is the prime suspect, he is thrown in jail, which he can’t handle, and then is put under house arrest, which he hates. His mother loses her job because of this, and she hires a lawyer, Oliver Bond, who has close to no experience in his career field.
Jodi Picoult really hit a home run on this one; the captivating storyline and the heart behind it are too bold not to notice. Critics and readers alike enjoyed this state-of-the-art novel about how such a simple thing as a disability can tear a family apart, and label someone as a criminal. I would recommend this for all teens over 15, because of the great story and moving plot.