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Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult — A 15-minute Summary
Inside this Instaread Summary:
Overview of the entire book
Introduction to the important people in the book
Summary and analysis of all the chapters in the book
Key Takeaways of the book
A Reader's Perspective
Preview of this summary:
Chapters 1–3
At thirteen, Jenna Metcalf is a precocious loner who has lived with her
grandmother since she was three. Her father, Thomas, is in a mental institution.
Jenna longs for her mom, a scientist who studied memory and elephants. One of
Alice’s key findings was that people remember negative moments, but forget
traumatic ones. Jenna believes this may have happened to her on the night that
her mother disappeared. That night, the trampled body of an employee, Nevvie
Ruehl, was found at Thomas’ elephant sanctuary in rural New Hampshire, the
New England Elephant Sanctuary. Jenna clings to her mother’s journals as a
way to hold onto her. She also searches for Alice online.
Jenna consults a medium, Serenity Jones, who tells her that Alice is alive before
brushing her off. Jenna learns online that Serenity lost her fame and credibility
after wrongly telling a senator that his missing son was alive.
She rides her bike home via a pretty spot carpeted with purple mushrooms at the
former sanctuary, now a nature park. The journals say that Maura, her mom’s
favorite elephant, buried her dead calf there.
Alice reflects on whether elephants actually forget anything.
Serenity’s gift of clairvoyance emerged when she was very young. She achieved
great success, even had her own TV show, until fame went to her head and her
two spirit guides left her. Now she is a fake psychic. After Jenna’s first visit,
Serenity dreams about a woman and an elephant watching over her. Jenna
returns. Serenity asks if her mother had something to do with elephants. When
Jenna reacts positively, she is certain that she is meant to help Jenna.
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