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The Children Actby Ian McEwanPrice: $25.00(Hardcover)Published: September 09, 2014Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)From the Publisher: Fiona Maye is a leading High Courtjudge who presides over cases in the family court. She isrenowned for her fierce intelligence, exactitude, andsensitivity. But her professional success belies private sorrow anddomestic strife. There is the lingering regret of her childlessness,and now her marriage of thirty years is in crisis.At the same time, she is called on to try an urgent case: Adam, abeautiful seventeen-year-old boy, is refusing for religious reasonsthe medical treatment that could save his life, and his devoutparents echo his wishes. Time is running out. Should the secularcourt overrule sincerely expressed faith? In the course of reachinga decision, Fiona visits Adam in the hospital—an encounter thatstirs long-buried feelings in her and powerful new emotions in theboy. Her judgment has momentous consequences for them both.Rate This Book|Rate/ReviewAdd To BookshelfGet This Book
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Personalize / Add More ChoicesWhat We SayAfter a lesser effort or two, author Ian McEwan is in top form with "The Children Act." His latest novel focuses onHigh Court judge Fiona Maye, a respected figure at the top of her profession. In five vivid sections, McEwaneffortlessly enters the mind of this intelligent, sophisticated and yes wise woman who is blindsided when her husbandof many years demands the right to have an affair. She throws herself into her work -- indeed, work and thedisturbing after-effects of one challenging case are the reasons she's pulled back from him in the past few months.But here is where McEwan strikes gold. Maye thinks deeply and thoughtfully about her marriage, always analyzingthe various stances of her and her husband with self-aware anger, compassion and insight. But she does that evenmore with the bewildering and heartbreaking cases on which she must rule, such as conjoined twins who will dieunless they are separated though only one will survive the operation, two little girls fought over by a mother who hasrejected her husband's narrow faith and most of all a teenage boy whose parents refuse a blood transfusion thatwould save his life on religious grounds. Each case is compelling, indeed fascinating as Maye pours over the detailsand looks for the relevant facts that will guide her decision. We wrestle with the same issues, marvel at her clear-headed way through these moral minefields and rather fall in love with her in the process. It's no surprise when oneof the people affected by her ruling perhaps does the same. McEwan works on many levels here, but above all it's awonderful portrait of a 59 year old woman at the top of her profession who is complex, vulnerable, charming and inthat very British way perhaps reserved to a fault. I look forward to Emma Thompson's Oscar-winning performance afew years from now. Meanwhile, enjoy this work that is nearly the equal of his masterpiece "Atonement." -- MichaelGiltzLessWhat Others Say"Absorbing."—The New Yorker"McEwan presents a ferociously intelligent and competent woman struggling to rule on a complex legal matter whilefeeling humiliated and betrayed by her husband ... a notable volume from one of the finest writers alive."—Ron Charles, The Washington Post"A short, concise, strong novel in which a judge's ruling decides the fate of a teenage boy in ways she never intendedor imagined ... it's a book that begins with the briskness of a legal brief written by a brilliant mind, and concludes witha gracefulness found in the work of few other writers."—Meg Wolitzer, NPR"A quietly exhilarating book ... The Children Act chronicles the recalibration of a 30-year marriage after it has fallenout of balance."—Mona Simpson, Los Angeles Times"Haunting ... a brief but substantial addition to the author’s oeuvre."—Entertainment Weekly, A-"[The Children Act’s] sense of life-and-death urgency never wavers ... you would have to go back to Saturday orAtonement to find scenes of equivalent intensity and emotional…
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=d44e4618-59a7-4733-b96f-e0c2eb003e94&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&1/4HomeTop Picks: All BooksThe Children Act
The Children Actby Ian McEwanPrice: $25.00(Hardcover)Published: September 09, 2014Rating: 0.0/5 (0 votes cast)From the Publisher: Fiona Maye is a leading High Courtjudge who presides over cases in the family court. She isrenowned for her fierce intelligence, exactitude, andsensitivity. But her professional success belies private sorrow anddomestic strife. There is the lingering regret of her childlessness,and now her marriage of thirty years is in crisis.At the same time, she is called on to try an urgent case: Adam, abeautiful seventeen-year-old boy, is refusing for religious reasonsthe medical treatment that could save his life, and his devoutparents echo his wishes. Time is running out. Should the secularcourt overrule sincerely expressed faith? In the course of reachinga decision, Fiona visits Adam in the hospital—an encounter thatstirs long-buried feelings in her and powerful new emotions in theboy. Her judgment has momentous consequences for them both.Rate This Book|Rate/ReviewAdd To BookshelfGet This Book
Go to your preferred retailer, click to choose a format and you' ll be taken directly to their site whereyou can get this book.BookFilter
12/1/2015BookFilter | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=d44e4618-59a7-4733-b96f-e0c2eb003e94&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&2/4
Personalize / Add More ChoicesWhat We SayAfter a lesser effort or two, author Ian McEwan is in top form with "The Children Act." His latest novel focuses onHigh Court judge Fiona Maye, a respected figure at the top of her profession. In five vivid sections, McEwaneffortlessly enters the mind of this intelligent, sophisticated and yes wise woman who is blindsided when her husbandof many years demands the right to have an affair. She throws herself into her work -- indeed, work and thedisturbing after-effects of one challenging case are the reasons she's pulled back from him in the past few months.But here is where McEwan strikes gold. Maye thinks deeply and thoughtfully about her marriage, always analyzingthe various stances of her and her husband with self-aware anger, compassion and insight. But she does that evenmore with the bewildering and heartbreaking cases on which she must rule, such as conjoined twins who will dieunless they are separated though only one will survive the operation, two little girls fought over by a mother who hasrejected her husband's narrow faith and most of all a teenage boy whose parents refuse a blood transfusion thatwould save his life on religious grounds. Each case is compelling, indeed fascinating as Maye pours over the detailsand looks for the relevant facts that will guide her decision. We wrestle with the same issues, marvel at her clear-headed way through these moral minefields and rather fall in love with her in the process. It's no surprise when oneof the people affected by her ruling perhaps does the same. McEwan works on many levels here, but above all it's awonderful portrait of a 59 year old woman at the top of her profession who is complex, vulnerable, charming and inthat very British way perhaps reserved to a fault. I look forward to Emma Thompson's Oscar-winning performance afew years from now. Meanwhile, enjoy this work that is nearly the equal of his masterpiece "Atonement." -- MichaelGiltzLessWhat Others Say"Absorbing."—The New Yorker"McEwan presents a ferociously intelligent and competent woman struggling to rule on a complex legal matter whilefeeling humiliated and betrayed by her husband ... a notable volume from one of the finest writers alive."—Ron Charles, The Washington Post"A short, concise, strong novel in which a judge's ruling decides the fate of a teenage boy in ways she never intendedor imagined ... it's a book that begins with the briskness of a legal brief written by a brilliant mind, and concludes witha gracefulness found in the work of few other writers."—Meg Wolitzer, NPR"A quietly exhilarating book ... The Children Act chronicles the recalibration of a 30-year marriage after it has fallenout of balance."—Mona Simpson, Los Angeles Times"Haunting ... a brief but substantial addition to the author’s oeuvre."—Entertainment Weekly, A-"[The Children Act’s] sense of life-and-death urgency never wavers ... you would have to go back to Saturday orAtonement to find scenes of equivalent intensity and emotional…