Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: 'Tis the Season for a Thriller

Winner of the 2014 Thriller Award for Best Hardcover Fiction (as announced by the International Thriller Writers in July), The Demonologist by Andrew Pyper is a psychological fiction novel sure to provide a big thrill...

Winning acclaim for his expertise in demonic literature including Milton's Paradise Lost, Columbia professor David Ullman travels to Italy and witnesses a startling phenomenon that challenges his skepticism before his 12-year-old daughter is targeted by a demonic enemy that would claim him as a messenger. (Publisher Summary)

By the award-winning author of Lost Girls.

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

'Tis the Season for a Thriller

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