Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: 2015 Summer Reading Club Registration Begins Today!

Today is the first day that patrons are able to register for the Adult Summer Reading Club! Come on down to the Community Library or click here to sign up! You will receive an incentive tote bag and an ice cream sandwich (on Thursday, June 25th only, while supplies last) just for enrolling!

For every book that you read or listen to, you will receive a raffle for a chance to win a prize!

Questions? Call 631-399-1511 x240 for more information.

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

2015 Summer Reading Club Registration Begins Today!

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