The Laws of Gravity
Written by Liz Rosenberg
Narrated by Peter Berkrot
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this audiobook
An exquisite tour de force, The Laws of Gravity is a testament to what it means to be a family, what it takes to save a life, and the lengths we will go to protect the ones we love.
Two families, bound by blood, hear terrible news. One decision holds the key to survival-but at a devastating cost.
Nicole, auburn-haired, airy, and beautiful, discovers her body is betraying her. She turns to cousin and childhood best friend Ari for the cord blood he's been banking for his own children. Ari stands firm, bringing them before the scales of justice. Solomon Richter, a state Supreme Court judge on the brink of retirement, is touched by this legal battle like no other. His blood case, he calls it. A case that calls into question the very things we live for: the enduring bonds of family, and the love that lasts a lifetime.
It's Nicole's last chance, Ari's last stand, and the judge's last case.
A novel of heartbreaking honesty, humor, and depth...an unforgettable story of finding love and finding family...The Laws of Gravity heralds Liz Rosenberg as a storytelling sensation.
Liz Rosenberg
Liz Rosenberg is the author of more than thirty books, including the critically acclaimed, bestselling novels The Moonlight Palace, The Laws of Gravity, and Home Repair. She is also a prize-winning poet and children’s book author. For over twenty years, she was a book review columnist at the Boston Globe. She teaches creative writing and English at Binghamton University. She has also guest-taught at Bennington College, Colgate University, Sarah Lawrence College, and Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. She divides her time between Upstate New York, Florida, and Worcester, Massachusetts. She lives with her daughter, Lily, and their dog, Sophie. Her son, Eli, a comic and podcaster, lives in New York City. Visit Liz on Facebook for updates, extraordinary photos of ordinary beauty, and more information.
More audiobooks from Liz Rosenberg
Beauty and Attention: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Scribbles, Sorrows, and Russet Leather Boots: The Life of Louisa May Alcott Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Moonlight Palace Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Indigo Hill: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Reviews for The Laws of Gravity
22 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I enjoyed this book as the characters were interesting and the situation was nothing I knew about. The subject is two sets of families and the controversy around a court case for an ill woman. It is a sad story for all sides involved.Liz is from Binghamton and her other novel is about the Binghamton area and the university. I enjoyed it as I live in Binghamton and there was a lightness about the book. I felt I knew some of the people when I read it (but I did not).This book is much heavier but also deals with an area that Liz revisits from her past. I liked it because coincidentally, I also grew up in the same area of Long Island (Northport for me.. maybe Huntington, for Liz?)The story is a sad one and deals with how two cousins are close until there is a medical issue. One of the cousins can help another one at some cost -- but will he? The theme of the book is families and how they deal with change and crisis. ***I reread this book a second time as Liz came and spoke to my book group. I really enjoyed the book more the second time around. I noticed more of the clues about each of the characters. The red hair stuck out and the glances between people and the descriptions of their faces and body movements. The author did a great job with the characters of this book. When I read it the first time, I concentrated on the plot. Of course, on the second reading, I knew the outcome so I read it for the characterization. Liz said she is working on a new book and will be done and published soon. I am looking forward to reading the next one.The second time is read it was Dec. 2013.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/53.0 out of 5 stars - The law cannot compel altruism.This novel centers on a legal question: can someone be forced to give cord blood (or other body parts) to a relative? And the moral dilemma: how could they refuse to help a family member in desperate need? Nicole and Ari are cousins and have been close throughout their lives. Now Nicole is sick and needs the last chance of cure that may be found in Ari's son Julian's cord blood. At first he agrees to let her use the banked blood, but then Julian has a health scare that makes Ari retract his promise. Does Nicole have the RIGHT to that blood? How can Ari withhold it from her when it holds the possibility of her health and life vs pain and death. He stands alone against a legal team and the state Supreme Court judge who is hearing his last case before retirement.Halfway through the book I was getting so irritated by the characters, especially Nicole, that I almost stopped reading it. Melodramatic and manipulative, the author tries to get the reader to a high moral ground and to root for Nicole's case against her cousin. I really did not care for ANY of the stereotypical characters in the novel, nor was their portrayal believable. Too much angsting. Aside from the annoying reminder of how beautiful and good Nicole was (as opposed to her mean, hulking, selfish cousin), I really didn't ever become fully engaged with the drama playing out. The book became more of a morality lecture with religious sermons about conscience, purpose, duty, and being a "brother's keeper" from the Jewish point of view.If you like Jodi Picoult, Diane Chamberlain, and some of the other female authors who write about family drama, then you would enjoy this novel.PS - I chose this book because I am concurrently having a bone marrow drive at the school where I work. Donors join the National Bone Marrow Registry and may be called to donate if they match someone who has the need. Their consent to be swabbed, and their registration, is voluntary. Even if they later prove a match, they can remove themselves from the registry and elect not to go through with the donation. The choice of giving their marrow must be FREE WILL. You can encourage people to help others, but you can't MAKE them do it. I also believe it is wrong to try to "guilt" someone into giving -- and I am glad there are laws that prevent the government and the courts from forcing people to do whatever they decide is the "right and just thing."ARC Amazon Vine
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This is a book that handles a very important, rather new subject well. Nicole and Ari have been close friends, and they are cousins, most of their lives. Their children are good friends as well and when Nicole finds out she has leukemia, that her best chance is a blood cord transplant, she turns to her cousin Ari. He has been banking blood, from his own child, for his families future use if it becomes necessary. Although this is a sad book, there is humor as well, many times I felt manipulated by the author. Led almost to feel more sadness. I also had a hard time with the characters, Nicole came off whiny quite often, yes I know she is dying, but her whining did her no favors. I also immensely disliked Ari by the end of the book and I am fairly sure most readers will have this same feeling. All in all this is a poignant book about family, how much we owe our families, friendship and an ethical and legal look at this fairly new scientific development.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5What an amazing capture of family, life, and death. I haven’t been this emotionally struck by a book in a very long time.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I received this ARC from Book Browse First Impressions in exchange for an honest review.Family is extremely important but how far do you go to save someone when it could mean that your child might not be able to be saved in the future? This story calls into question the issue of saved cord blood and can a court force someone to give it to save someone in their family. The characters came alive for me and there were tears in my eyes almost through the whole book so be sure to keep a box of tissues nearby.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Laws Of GravityByLiz RosenbergMy " in a nutshell" summary...Cousins Ari and Nicole...close as children...far apart as adults.My thoughts after reading this book...This was a sad book...I knew from the start it would be...Nicole becomes very ill and the only thing that might save her is the cord blood that her cousin Ari had the foresight to save in case his children ever became ill. He rashly promises it to Nicole but when his own son becomes ill...not seriously...he changes his mind. It becomes messy...it becomes a court trial...but I won't tell you the outcome.Sort of alongside this story there is the Judge's story...this would be the judge who presides at this trial.What I loved about this book...I loved Nicole...her story was sad and scary and reading a book like this tends to make me feel exceptionally mortal. Her relationship with Mimi...Ari's wife...was a sweet one.What I did not love...I really had no fondness for Ari. He seemed to have changed so much...to just a really mean self centered man.Final thoughts...Not sure I loved this book...the subject matter was a difficult one and it was sad...very sad...but it was beautifully written...it had some joyous parts and I am glad that I read it...I needed to read a book like this.