Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: New Zombie Thriller: Devil's Wake

A mysterious epidemic turns people into rampaging zombies driven to attack and feed on other humans. Within six months, civilization has collapsed with pockets of survivors seeking each other out. Among them are teen Kendra, who saw her family attacked, and a pack of juvenile delinquents. Traveling from Washington to California, Kendra and her companions endure encounters with zombie gangs and opportunistic humans. Co authored by award winning writers (and husband and wife team) Steven Barnes and Tananarive Due, Devil's Wake is a book zombie lover's won't be able to put down!

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

Genre: Adult Non-Fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5

"Being Mortal is about the limitations of what modern medicine can provide for people as their lives draw to a close. Gawande argues that the objective of medicine should not merely be treatment and survival; medical care should also ensure dignity in death and having control over one's final moments. He argues that instead of aggressively fighting the inescapable realities of aging, we should ask the hard questions of ourselves and our loved ones -- What makes life worth living? When should we try to extend our lives, and when should we choose a better quality of our remaining days over extending their quantity?

This book is difficult to read. Not because of the way Gawande writes -- his style is highly engaging, and he never lapses into excessively scientific jargon or overly simplistic explanations -- but because of the tough subject matter. Gawande draws on his own experiences as a doctor and peppers his book with honest and humane stories of his patients, friends, and family; the stories he tells make the book more accessible, and also more heartbreaking. (And that's not a bad thing.)

No one likes to think about their loved ones', or their own, impending mortality. But it's important to have these hard conversations, because as Gawande says, "endings matter." - Amanda

New Zombie Thriller: Devil's Wake

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