Small Great Things

　　一樁醫療糾紛
　　掀起眾人心中波瀾不興的種族思辨

　　善於書寫道德爭議，暢銷作家茱迪．皮考特此回挑戰美國種族議題，赤裸呈現當今美國社會猶存的偏見與歧視。

　　金恩博士：「如果我沒辦法做偉大的事，我可以做偉大的小事。」(“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things that are great.” )

　　Ruth是一位有著二十餘年經驗的資深護士，在康乃迪克州的醫院產房負責照護新生兒。一天她才剛完成例行巡房，即被通知不能照顧其中一個嬰兒。嬰兒的父親Turk是強烈的種族主義者，白人至上的他要求醫院不能讓非裔的Ruth碰觸小孩。但隔天，新生兒病房人手短缺，只剩Ruth一個人在病房裡，此時嬰兒卻心臟窘迫到不能呼吸！理應立即幫忙CPR的Ruth遲疑了，究竟該秉持救人的天性與護士的誓言，還是遵守醫院跟家長的禁令。這一下遲疑，導致了嚴重的後果。

　　她的護士執照被暫停了，悲憤的Turk控告Ruth見死不救。Ruth的辯護律師Kennedy是個認為自己沒有種族偏見的白人，他亟欲幫Ruth打贏官司，卻要Ruth不能在法庭上提到種族問題...三個不同身份背景的人，在同一時間點，開始思索自己常年信奉的真理，是否為真。(文/博客來編譯)

　　This stunning new novel is Jodi Picoult at her finest—complete with unflinching insights, richly layered characters, and a page-turning plot with a gripping moral dilemma at its heart.
 
　　Ruth Jefferson is a labor and delivery nurse at a Connecticut hospital with more than twenty years’ experience. During her shift, Ruth begins a routine checkup on a newborn, only to be told a few minutes later that she’s been reassigned to another patient. The parents are white supremacists and don’t want Ruth, who is African American, to touch their child. The hospital complies with their request, but the next day, the baby goes into cardiac distress while Ruth is alone in the nursery. Does she obey orders or does she intervene?
 
　　Ruth hesitates before performing CPR and, as a result, is charged with a serious crime. Kennedy McQuarrie, a white public defender, takes her case but gives unexpected advice: Kennedy insists that mentioning race in the courtroom is not a winning strategy. Conflicted by Kennedy’s counsel, Ruth tries to keep life as normal as possible for her family—especially her teenage son—as the case becomes a media sensation. As the trial moves forward, Ruth and Kennedy must gain each other’s trust, and come to see that what they’ve been taught their whole lives about others—and themselves—might be wrong.
 
　　With incredible empathy, intelligence, and candor, Jodi Picoult tackles race, privilege, prejudice, justice, and compassion—and doesn’t offer easy answers. Small Great Things is a remarkable achievement from a writer at the top of her game.

　　Praise for Jodi Picoult’s Leaving Time
 
　　“A riveting drama.”—Us Weekly
 
　　“[A] moving tale.”—People
 
　　“A fast-paced, surprise-ending mystery.”—USA Today
 
　　“Poignant . . . an entertaining story about parental love, friendship, loss.”—The Washington Post

作者簡介

　　Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-three novels, including Leaving Time, The Storyteller, Lone Wolf, Between the Lines, Sing You Home, House Rules, Handle with Care, Change of Heart, Nineteen Minutes, and My Sister’s Keeper. She is also the author, with daughter Samantha van Leer, of two young adult novels, Between the Lines and Off the Page. Picoult lives in New Hampshire with her husband and three children.