Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: comics

For all you nostalgia-fans out there, the Digital Comic Museum offers the chance to download free digital editions of classic comics from the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Discover (or re-discover) such superheroes as Atoman and Captain Science, as well as adventure, mystery, and humor comics from the golden age of this genre. For something a little newer, take a look at the Community Library's new section of graphic novels for adults (near the newly-created corner area for 18-24 year-old patrons). Titles include such critically-acclaimed books as The Watchmen, V for Vendetta, Maus, and Persepolis, as well as modern popular favorites.

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