2025 Reading Challenge discussion

This thread is to discuss By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult.

Pages: 528 pages

Length: 1 month (May)

Participants: Susan, Carrie

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.

Here are some questions to help get the conversation started! Feel free to look up discussion questions specific to this book or come up with your own. Just make sure any questions that contain spoilers are under spoiler tags.
Discussion questions are not required but may be a fun way to talk about the book and get to know each other!

Prior to starting:
What prompted you to join this buddy read?
Have you read this author before? What do you think of their other books?

Mid-read:
What character or ideas do you relate to the most and why?
Do you have any favorite quotes or scenes?

After reading:
What was enjoyable or not-so-enjoyable about this book?
Did this book change your perception about anything, either within the book (character development) or in real life?

I'm so happy someone wanted to read By Any Other Name with me! I am a huge fan of Jodi Picoult's and I'm looking forward to reading this book!

i previously read this and LOVED IT! enjoy 🫶🏻

Hey, Susan! I am also excited to get started on this book. I am still waiting on my turn to borrow so will not be starting it for a bit later into the month. When do you plan to read it?

I have read several Jodi Picoult books and can always count on a good book from her. Do you have a favorite?

hannah •all the tbr• wrote: "i previously read this and LOVED IT! enjoy 🫶🏻"

Would you say this was your favorite Jodi Picoult book?

Carrie wrote: "Hey, Susan! I am also excited to get started on this book. I am still waiting on my turn to borrow so will not be starting it for a bit later into the month. When do you plan to read it?

I have re..."

Just saw this message. I think my favorite Picoult book is Nineteen Minutes, but I have loved so many of her books, Mad Honey is great, so is The Pact and My Sister’s Keeper. I could go on and on. I just started reading By Any Other Name this morning. Hoping I enjoy it just as much as her past books.

I have started it, but I am having a hard time getting into it. I am not sure if it is the book or just my mood or other distractions.

Carrie wrote: "I have started it, but I am having a hard time getting into it. I am not sure if it is the book or just my mood or other distractions."

Its definitely different...I'm not far enough in yet to form an opinion.

I'm a quarter of the way in, it's not my favorite Picoult book, but it's not bad enough to dnf. I'll keep trucking away at it and I'm hoping it gets better. (view spoiler)[ The two stories lines between 1500s to 2000s is interesting. I do like learning about days long ago (1500s). Things were so different back then it's hard to believe the way people used to live and the stuff women had to put up with. Although I guess Mel is putting up with arrogant men in 2024 as well. Anyway looking forward to seeing where the story goes. (hide spoiler)]

I finished listening To By Any Other Name yesterday. Wasn't my favorite Picoult book, but I liked the idea of (view spoiler)[a female writing (helping) Shakespeare's literature. I'm also so glad I didn't have to live way back when men controlled women so horribly and we're free to love whomever we wish. (hide spoiler)]. Thank you for reading with me Carrie.

This book is one of the few that I got a physical copy to read. Life has gotten crazy and I have barely read 50 pages in the past week which is not even close to normal for me. The audio version just became available and I think I am going to switch to that. I may have more time that way. We have found ourselves deep in wedding plans all of a sudden. My daughter does not see the point of a long engagement!

But, yeah, so far it is not my favorite book by this author.

I liked the different accents of the people who read the book. I'm glad I listened to this one, I think it was better than reading straight out. I hope you can get through it, but I understand when life gets in the way.