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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The timeline of this book spun my head backwards, upside down, and sideways. It took some real finessing to keep straight. Regardless, I wanted to live inside this book by the end and found it so memorable and enjoyable it needs five stars.
I am a huge Jodi fan and I’m sad to say I did not enjoy this book at all.
It took me a looong time to get through it and at times thought I would just give up.
It was just too much academic for me.
It took me a looong time to get through it and at times thought I would just give up.
It was just too much academic for me.
It’s not often you find a book that seems to speak right to your soul, but the Book of Two Ways has done just that. No matter how good your life has been, every single person has those thoughts of ‘what if…’. What if I had made different choices? How different would my life be? And how do you know if you made the right choices? Is it too late to go back and try again?
The Book of Two Ways follows Dawn in two separate timelines. In one, she’s working out troubles at home with her husband and daughter, and doing her job as a Death Doula. In the other, she has returned to Egypt to reunite with a lost love and has the opportunity to continue her research on the Book of Two Ways that she had been working on before she gave up her dream of becoming an Egyptologist.
This book is absolutely fascinating. The amount of research Jodi Picoult put into this book is incredible, and I feel like I have learned so much. From including photos of hieroglyphics to detailed descriptions of quantum theory, there is so much knowledge to be gleamed, all of which contributes to the overall story. Mixed in to all this is some great humor, and some quirky superstitions.
The romance in this book is one for the ages, but its also relatable to anyone who has ever been in love. She is inexplicably torn between her husband, who is her rock, and her past love who still sets her on fire. Even on the outside, it’s an impossible choice as both men are wonderful and offer her very different things. Spoiler alert: it ends in a major cliffhanger, and as much as I hate that because I have a deep need to know, I think it was important that the author didn’t hand us the answer on a silver platter because that would defeat the message of the book.
Overall, this is one of the most powerful books I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. It has made me think about the decisions I have made, where I am, and where I want to be. This is the kind of book I will re-read whenever I need some perspective. I highly, highly recommend this book.
The Book of Two Ways follows Dawn in two separate timelines. In one, she’s working out troubles at home with her husband and daughter, and doing her job as a Death Doula. In the other, she has returned to Egypt to reunite with a lost love and has the opportunity to continue her research on the Book of Two Ways that she had been working on before she gave up her dream of becoming an Egyptologist.
This book is absolutely fascinating. The amount of research Jodi Picoult put into this book is incredible, and I feel like I have learned so much. From including photos of hieroglyphics to detailed descriptions of quantum theory, there is so much knowledge to be gleamed, all of which contributes to the overall story. Mixed in to all this is some great humor, and some quirky superstitions.
The romance in this book is one for the ages, but its also relatable to anyone who has ever been in love. She is inexplicably torn between her husband, who is her rock, and her past love who still sets her on fire. Even on the outside, it’s an impossible choice as both men are wonderful and offer her very different things. Spoiler alert: it ends in a major cliffhanger, and as much as I hate that because I have a deep need to know, I think it was important that the author didn’t hand us the answer on a silver platter because that would defeat the message of the book.
Overall, this is one of the most powerful books I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading. It has made me think about the decisions I have made, where I am, and where I want to be. This is the kind of book I will re-read whenever I need some perspective. I highly, highly recommend this book.
It seems I share the same opinion as many fellow reviewers: this book was well written (Picoult is inarguably a fantastic writer) but there was just a LOT going on. Egyptology, quantum physics and alternate realities/parallel universes, death and hospice, a plane crash, weight/fat-shaming issues, marriage issues, long lost loves, teenage ODs, and even English nobility(??). While these served as backstory and plot points it all felt like too much. Still an enjoyable read though!
I liked the overall story inside this book and the discussion of life choices and paths and the death doula spin. However the writing style of picoult feels predictable to me and had to skim over a lot of the Egypt references to get through the book. Similar to how the scenes of court rooms and court matters felt in her earlier books.
4.5 stars, mostly because I save my 5s. This book is like Sliding Doors + Egypt + death doula, all of which I find interesting on various levels. I’m still planning on the death doula training at some point.
At the end I said "Wait, what's happening? How de do what now?" but then I read a bit from the interwebs and understood, but overall I loved this book and the deep-dive into ancient Egyptian history and the archaeology that uncovers it. Hint: It's called the Book of Two Ways for multiple reasons.
I have always loved Egyptian history and you can tell this book was well-researched! However, I would have to agree with many other reviews that it had a LOT of educational material and it almost overshadows the main storyline. I still enjoyed the book, I just wish it had more going on with it. Since I listened to it on audiobook while I was multi-tasking, it's possible that I might have missed something for an even deeper meaning of the material, but ultimately it was just a fun read and not much more.
2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.
Book is third person POV written both in past and present tense (because it jumps back and forth in time).
2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.
Book is third person POV written both in past and present tense (because it jumps back and forth in time).