House Rules

Compare House Rules’s portrayal of autism to the film Music (2021), written and directed by singer Sia. Music received overwhelming backlash for its inaccurate portrayal of autism. The film was also criticized for Sia’s decision to cast a neurotypical actress as a character with autism. How does House Rules compare to Music?

Autism research has evolved substantially since House Rules was published in 2010. How does current research affect your reading of the novel?

How does House Rules compare to other novels that explore disability, such as Flowers for Algernon (1956)?

House Rules is told from the first-person perspective of many different characters. What is the impact of this stylistic choice?

Compare and contrast the characters of Rich and Emma. How do their identities as parents shape their decisions in the story? How do their contrasting concepts of justice impact their interactions with each other and with Jacob?

What perspective does the novel offer on the police force in contemporary America?

House Rules explores the question of whether or not autism should be seen as a disability. How does Picoult’s portrayal of Jacob answer this question?

What is the effect of including case studies at the beginning of each part?