When Willow is born with severe osteogenesis imperfecta her parents are devastated—she will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows a lifetime of pain. In this provocative story from the #1 New York Times bestselling author “Picoult writes with unassuming brilliance” (Stephen King).

Every expectant parent will tell you that they don’t want a perfect baby just a healthy one. Charlotte and Sean O’Keefe would have asked for a healthy baby too if they’d been given the choice. Instead their lives are made up of sleepless nights mounting bills the pitying stares of “luckier” parents and maybe worst of all the what-ifs. What if their child had been born healthy? But it’s all worth it because Willow is funny as it seems perfect. She’s smart as a whip on her way to being as pretty as her mother kind brave and for a five-year-old an unexpectedly deep source of wisdom. Willow is Willow in sickness and in health.

Everything changes though after a series of events forces Charlotte and her husband to confront the most serious what-ifs of all. What if Charlotte had known earlier of Willow’s illness? What if things could have been different? What if their beloved Willow had never been born? To do Willow justice Charlotte must ask herself these questions and one more. What constitutes a valuable life?

Emotionally riveting and profoundly moving Handle with Care is an unforgettable novel about the fragility of life and the lengths we will go to protect it.