The Book of Two Ways is, essentially, a book that shows us how using theories of quantum physics and the science of Egyptology, there are multiverses where we can and perhaps do live, love, and die simultaneously.

Dawn, who was writing her doctoral thesis when she left the field and became a death doula, is one of only a handful of people to survive a plane crash. Following her examination by medical professionals, Dawn is told the airline will fly her anywhere she wants; seemingly intending her to go back home to her husband, Brian, and their daughter, Meret, in Boston. Instead, Dawn flies to Cairo, back to Wyatt, and to where it all began fifteen years ago. But she also goes home.

As is now expected of Picoult’s book, TBOTW is remarkably well-researched, perhaps to much so to were I found my lids drooping. This book’s continuous explanation of what was going on, albeit necessary given the storyline, left me feeling like a student in a required advanced calculus class when my major was Russian literature. I skimmed a lot of the Egypt back history and my mind wandered elsewhere during much of the physics lessons. The story between all this, that I understand would be a complete mess without the explanations, was not much more than alright.

It’s hard not to compare, and I try not to, but this is my least favorite of this author. That being said, with books that have utterly shaken my foundation, the bar has set ridiculously high. This one just fell short.

This one is a 3.5/5, simply because it was a chore to not simply skip the Egypt chapters all together. ( )

With all the topics this book vaguely touches on (Egyptology, quantum physics, death, motherhood), this should have been a perfect book for me.

The info dump on all things Egypt didn't bother me at all. I took most of my electives at uni in that very field and loved those parts of the novel. But I have to be honest: they were written in such a dry, boring way that would turn away anyone who is not enthusiastic about the topic. There were some nice parts that described how Egyptians dealt with death and dying that really stood out for me. That was probably the highlight of the novel.

The bigger problem is that, for a book that could have been a lot more, it left me completely emotionally cold.
It also very strongly reinforced the cliche that women fall in love with bold, adventurous types who turn out to be the loves of their lives, while they marry calm, boring men who adore them.

For a death doula, the main character is quite uninspired and disappointing. I found her approach to death too clinical for someone in that role. I guess she is realistically imperfect, but not very likeable, with a twisted sense of morality.

I invested a lot of time and patience in this book, hoping that the development at the end will make up for the plane crash plot confusion, boring sections from around the halfway point and the lack of real character development, but from there until the end it was just getting worse.

Three pale stars from me (2.5). ( )

I love Jodi Picoult. However, this is not my favorite of her books. I'm not a fan of books where the chapters jump around in time. Other books of hers do too, but I'm usually able to cope. This one seemed different. I also didn't understand the "prologue"--I guess that never really happened? At least not in that way?
Anyway, Dawn is happily married to Brian and they have a lovely daughter, Merit. But apparently, Dawn has always still been in love with her first love, Wyatt. After spending time with a dying client (Dawn is a death doula) who regrets not reconnecting with her first love, Dawn decides she has to see Wyatt. There's more, but I don't want to give too much away.
I liked learning about death doulas--this sounds like a wonderful thing! Having recently lost my mother, and all 3 of my siblings (all to separate illnesses), I wish I had known about this. And also wish that it was covered by insurance!
I also liked learning about the Egyptian tombs, although it got a bit too involved for me. I could have done without the drawings too. I never saw in them what the author said was there.
I had trouble with Dawn. I know I am being judgmental. I liked her, but I liked her life in the "now" with Brian. I couldn't see her relationship with Wyatt as healthy. To each his/her own, I guess.
The title is great. "The Book of Two Ways" is a collection of graphical representations of the realm of the afterlife, along with spells related to the journey of the deceased through the afterlife, which is found in ancient Egyptian tombs. The title also relates to Dawn's "two ways"--a life with her husband and daughter, or the one with Wyatt. ( )

A woman pursues her past love of 18 years earlier when she thinks her husband is having an affair. She had been an egyptologist and her old flame still was. There was a lot of technical info about tombs, and Egyptian history which I ended up skipping over. But the human relationship segment was good. I am surprised this book did not get more publicity but it could be that it came out during the pandemic. ( )

Dawn is a death doula, someone who assists the client & family with the transition between life & death. She's married to Brian and has a teenage daughter, but when the plane she's traveling in crashes, she is forced to think about her own life choices and she begins to wonder where life would have taken her if she'd pursued her dream of becoming an Egyptologist and followed her heart to her first love, Wyatt.

The majority of Jodi Picoult's novels deal with controversial topics. This one, however, breaks from the mold a bit and explores parallel universes, so to speak. In some ways this novel was all over the place, both literally and figuratively, and I will admit I had trouble following the timeline throughout the majority of the book. I wasn't initially engaged with this story and I was really back and forth with this one -- there were parts that I liked and parts that I disliked. The main character was not necessarily likeable in that she often appeared selfish and made questionable decisions. It bothered me that the story began by capturing the reader's attention with a plane crash, but then there were seemingly no lasting effects or references to it throughout the bulk of the story, which I didn't feel was very realistic at all (though this was remedied later in the book). I liked the Egyptian references, though at times they were dry and too academic for the general feel of the novel. I think the part that appealed to me most was the idea of a death doula, a sort of super-person who aids the dying and their loved ones in all sorts of ways -- emotional & practical -- and it made me wonder why such people are not more well known and utilized in today's world. All in all, this was a decent book, though it had some weaknesses. It would be good for group discussion, however. ( )