Page 202 - 梁文燕紀念中學（沙田）－青苗文集

Helen Liang Memorial Secondary School (Shatin)

Kate will still die anyway. She therefore decides to sue her parents for taking away
the right to use her body.
The story begins not long after Anna sells her gold necklace. She uses the
money to hire a lawyer Campbell Alexander, who has a 91% winning rate in his
lawsuits. Campbell suffers from epilepsy so he has a seizure response dog to guard
him against his medical condition. Because of this illness, he breaks away from his
lover Julia Romano, who is being appointed Anna’s guardian by a law court, since
he thinks she deserves a better man.
In the meantime, feeling ignored or rejected, Kate and Anna’s brother Jesse
resorts to arson and drug abuse to vent his anger and disappointment.
All these events lead to the climax of the book which appears in the last couple
of chapters. It describes that Kate does not want to receive treatment and she
requests Anna to reject the donation of her kidney. Kate feels frightened when she
tells her mother what she has in mind because all through the years her mother
has devoted all she has to maintain her life. Although she knows it is not fair to
Anna, she considers it the only method that can keep all the kids alive. In fact, she
finds it toilful and torturous to undergo all the treatment, so she asks Anna for help.
Anna wants to fulfill Kate’s wish so he helps Alexander Campbell the lawyer for
assistance. Anna finally wins the lawsuit and has the right over the use of her body.
The twist is upon hearing the winning judgment of Anna’s case, Campbell and Anna
meet a terrible traffic accident. Anna is certified brain dead on arrival at the hospital
and her parents decide to unplug her life-support apparatuses. Campbell, as Anna’s
power of attorney, decides to donate Anna’s Kidney to Kate and finally, it is Kate
who can continue to live.
The book has the power to provoke and ignites various streams of thoughts
from the readers. Suppose I am one of the characters and I may have the chance
to ponder the different plights I may be subjected to. For example, if I were Kate’s
mother, would I choose to give birth to Anna or would I just let Kate die? It is a
dilemma since there is no easy answer and the consequences of either choice may
affect everyone involved, but who should have the right to make a final decision
over another person or other people’s lives? Once we fit in our roles as a caring
and loving father or mother, people are often being forced to make choices. This is
because we are no longer capable of making real choices freely — can we just let
go of our beloved disease-stricken daughter and stop attempting anything that may

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