Jodi Picoult isn't one to shy away from the big issues. Stem cell research, the death penalty, mercy killing, gay rights and religion have all featured in her best-selling novels. One topic she has never covered is racism. Until now.
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"I tried to write about race 25 years ago and I failed," says Picoult on the eve of her Australian tour.
"I had to put the book aside because I couldn't seem to create an authentic story and I asked myself is this even my story to tell?
"I'm a white woman, what could I possibly contribute to a book about racism? And it wasn't until I found this particular story that I realised that I was going to be able to finish a novel about racism in the US."
Small Great Things, like many of Picoult's books, is based on a real-life incident that occurred in Glenn, Michigan, in 2013, where an African American nurse was instructed not to treat a baby whose parents were white supremacists. As she does, Picoult asked herself the "what if" question.
"I wondered what if that nurse had been alone with the baby when something went wrong? What if she had to choose between saving a baby's life or disobeying her superior's orders?"
It saddens Picoult in some way that the book is very timely.
"The sad truth now in our country, with the election coming, the rhetoric of hate has been given a green light," she says.
"What I really hope my book does is give people who look like me a vocabulary and a way to join a conversation that will keep that hate rhetoric from taking over again."
The book has profoundly affected its author, so much more than any other she has written, she says.
"It's changed the way I see the world, it's changed the way I interact with people.
"I've spent 47 years of my life not talking about race because it was too hard and because I was afraid of making a mistake and I was afraid of offending someone.
"It's changed the way I see my place in the world and the privileges that I have as someone who is white in America."
Picoult tells the story from three different perspectives. There's the African American nurse Ruth Jefferson, the white public defender Kennedy McQuarrie who picks up her case, and Turk Bauer, the white supremacist father. It's an interesting mix.
"It's really easy to point to a skinhead and say 'That's a racist'. It's a little harder to point to ourselves and say the same thing.
"Racism isn't just about prejudice, it's about who holds the power. If you are white in America you are part of the equation of racism, a very big part of it."
Picoult interviewed two former skinheads as part of her research for the book. "Everything you read in Turk's sections happened to one of those two men. There was so much hate.
"It was very, very hard to write in that voice because it made me feel dirty. I would finish every day and go down and take a shower.
"I felt very uncomfortable that when I was writing as Turk I could type the word 'nigger' and after a while not be upset by that."
Picoult hopes the book provides a platform for readers to start their own conversation about racism. If there's one thing her books have always done it's provide that segue from just knowing an issue exists into having a conversation about it.
"The book's even done that for me," she says.
"One of the things I did when I was researching the book was sit down with women of colour who told me all these stories about their lives, about their upbringing, I realised I had been very ignorant.
"One of these women said to me how often do you talk to your kids about racism and I said when something is on the news.
"She said I talk to my kids every night because it's a matter of life or death.
"You don't realise what a huge privilege it is not to have to think about it."
Small Great Things
Jodi Picoult
Allen & Unwin, $32.99
TOUR DATES
SYDNEY
Dymocks Literary Lunch. Thursday, November 10, 12 for 12.30pm. Venue: Sofitel Wentworth, 61 Phillips Street, Sydney. Cost: $80 for Dymocks Booklover members, $95 for non-members, includes two course meal and all beverages. Bookings: www.dymocks.com.au
BRISBANE
Dymocks Literary Dinner. Thursday, November 10. 7pm. Venue: Grand View Hotel, 49 North Street, Cleveland. Cost: $50 includes two course meal and a glass of wine. Bookings: Bookings are essential and enquiries can be made via (07) 3884 3000 or functions@gvh.com.au
An Evening with Jodi Picoult. Friday, November 11. 7.30pm. Venue: Ithaca Auditorium, Brisbane City Hall, Adelaide Street, Brisbane. Cost: Free but bookings essential. Bookings: ph (07) 3007 2800 or email briscorp@dymocks.com.au
CANBERRA
Author Talk with Jodi Picoult. Tuesday, November 15. 6pm. Venue: National Library, Parkes Place, Canberra. Cost: $15 entry fee includes refreshments. Bookings: www.nla.gov.au
MELBOURNE
Dymocks Literary Dinner. Wednesday, November 16. 6.30 for 7pm. Venue: Georges Restaurant, 819 Burke Road, Camberwell. Cost: $70 for Dymocks Booklover members and $75 for non-members includes two course meal and all drinks. Bookings: click here
PERTH
An Evening with Jodi Picoult. Thursday, November 17. 6.30pm. Venue: Sacred Heart College, Hocking Parade, Sorrento. Cost: $8 includes refreshments. Bookings: essential. Email joondalup@dymocks.com.au or call 9300 0895.
Dymocks Morning Tea. Friday, November 18. 9.15am. Venue: Parmelia Hilton, 14 Mill Street, Perth. Cost: $40 for Dymocks Booklover members, $45 for non-members, includes morning tea. Bookings: click here
