#10 The Best Kind of People by Zoe Whittall

#10 The Best Kind of People by Zoe Whittall

This is a novel that captivates from the outset. The story follows Sadie, a brilliant student at an academic prep school where her father, George teaches. George is a gifted teacher and noted hero for saving the school from a crazed gunman years before and an all-around good guy until some of his students bring charges of impropriety and attempted rape against him. What follows is an exciting and at times, shocking exploration into the inner workings of a court case; the arrest, police interviews, the gathering of evidence and the formation of a case.  But what I found most intriguing are the relationships between George and his family.  As George clings to innocence, his family is thrust into the spotlight, exposed to the ugly world of speculation, of their friends assuming he’s  guilty until proven innocent and the horrors of emerging evidence that leads them to doubt a man they love.  

Forced to face a community that once cherished them, George’s family deals with his arrest and trial in different ways revealing both the best and worst of human nature.   His wife, Joan must face the loss of her life partner and must pick up the pieces of not only her life but the lives of her children. Each person is tested beyond the limits of the human spirit as they are forced to continue living their lives with the shadow of George’s potential guilt hovering overhead.  

This book shares the story of an all-American family on the precipice of ruin. Their strength, innocence and trust in people’s inherent goodness are shattered when their lives are unexpectedly turned upside down. What is frightening though is that while this novel is a work of fiction, we read about stories like this in the news every day.  Not just accusations of crimes but horrific accidents or awful diagnosis’s that force families into another life than what they imagined. 

This is a fast-paced novel that runs the gamut of emotions and challenges our morality. It leads us to ask some important questions: how well do we truly know someone? How do you support them when they’ve done something horrible and are we acting out of a sense of duty or pity? And maybe we should ask ourselves; how would I deal with this if it were happening to me?

On that happy note…until next time, have you read a book today?

Julie