Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: Debut Released Today: In Zanesville by Jo Ann Beard

Today is the release date of Jo Ann Beard's debut novel In Zanesville, a book that Kirkus describes as a story of "angst, and a grudging reconciliation to childhood being left behind." The novel opens in a small town in the 1970s, when the narrator and her best friend Felicia spend the summer babysitting six children, only to quit in disgust after witnessing the parents' gruesome punishment of a disobedient child. Following the two friends as they navigate the social pressures of high school, the story is what Kirkus calls "a bittersweet remembrance of a time when life was more difficult than it should have been." Reserve your copy of this debut novel today!

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

Debut Released Today: In Zanesville by Jo Ann Beard

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