The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard

The Deep End of the Ocean is the story of a three-year old boy, Ben, who is kidnapped. His mother, Beth, wanders then in a self-centered haze. Nine years later, however, Ben is found again-this time as Sam Taylor, mowing Beth's lawn.
The real problem for me with this book is that some parts of the first part drag on for far too long. We already know about Beth's main characteristics and flaws as they are demonstrated in the first few chapters. Mitchard goes on too much about this and it can get fairly boring in parts. However, in the second part of the book, you really start to see a dysfunctional family breaking down slowly, and it is quite interesting to see the different reactions characters have to this (e.g. the older child becomes 'bad' i.e. rebels, the mother becomes increasingly self-absorbed, and the father becomes a workaholic).
However, a fair warning would be that this book contains, from the start, no happiness. Happiness does not exist in Beth's world. It is a story of how a family can survive but die in spirit. The story is left unfinished, with a trailing end, and we never quite know what will happen next.
This book left me with many questions. How can we define a 'good mother'? What would a family struck by tragedy do? And finally, was Ben (Sam Taylor) ultimately better off being raised by his kidnappers? It leaves a lot of room for thought.

Suitable for: Parents and Grandparents

Age Group: Adults

Star Rating: 8/10