books

35. Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
Part of my re-reading of YA novels from my youth. I forgot that this was also written by the author of Bridge to Terabithia. While I of course loved Bridge to Terabithia as a young Laurie, this is the book of Paterson's that most stuck with me. It really captures the hopeless rage of being a teenager, and the wondering if you'll ever break out of the world you were born into. Really great book.

36. Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell
I actually listened to this book on my iPod. I don't usually listen to audiobooks, but I downloaded some as part of a plan to motivate me to run. Then I gave up running in favor of dissertating. So in the end, I listened to this on my commutes to campus.

This book is crazy! In the end, it was too much for me. The narrator is really good, and the whole story is told first person by a mafia hit man turned doctor. It is really violent and full of sex and swearing (Mom, you would not like it!). The main character is really engaging, though, and there are lots of awesome medical asides. But seriously, it is full of grossness and violence. Wow.

37. Affinity by Sarah Waters
An upper class woman in 1790s London starts visiting a women's prison and encounters a spiritualist. In what follows, the "lady visitor" starts to believe more and more about spiritualism and tries to fit into a world that doesn't seem to have a place for her in it. The characters in this book were really well done, but in the end it was rather predictable.