Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: New Release: When the Killing's Done by T.C. Boyle

Released today, When the Killing's Done by T.C. Boyle is rated one of Bookpage's 20 most anticipated releases of 2011. This work of environmental fiction follows a Natural Park Service biologist as she works to prevent invasive, non-native creatures (as well as certain human locals) from destroying an island's natural ecosystem. If you're interested in reading about environmental issues, you can also try The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed (2005) by John Valiant, or the fictional work Antarctica (1998) by Kim Stanley Robinson, about the scramble to profit off the south pole. Leave a suggestion if you can recommend any other titles for eco-friendly types!

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 Release: When the Killing's Done by T.C. Boyle

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