Helpful Score: 7
I loved, loved, loved this book. This is the first book I have read by the author and I will be thinking about it for a long time. Very enjoyable and very interesting. I highly recommend it and am so sorry that I finished it - nothing can top it!
Helpful Score: 5
A very good novel. I enjoyed the Amazon setting, the mysterious, reclusive Dr. Swenson and her dedication to her scientific research, and the wonder of what her research might bring. Patchett wraps the novel up with an emotional, bitter-sweet ending. Highly recommended.
Helpful Score: 5
Beautifully written. The story starts out a bit slow, but then leaves you with lots to think about and discuss. It's a good book club selection...
Helpful Score: 4
I'll admit, when I first started this book, I did not necessarily expect to like it. With as many tears as it cost me, you might conclude that I didn't like it in the end, but I did. Patchett has a beautiful way of writing that describes things you would never expect and answers questions you would never think to ask. The places to which she takes you are at once horrible and beautiful; it seems to change at each moment. Patchett is not afraid to write about the uncomfortable and, sometimes, really terrible parts that are integral to the story. In fact, sometimes she jumps in very suddenly, and I am so shocked that I am unsure how to react afterward. All-in-all, this book is fantastic, but don't read it if you are wanting a happy ending. Not that it is unhappy per se, but there are two sides to everything in this novel, and sometimes it is hard to tell on which side you are standing.
Helpful Score: 2
I just started reading this book yesterday, but I can't put it down. Ann Patchett is a masterful story teller. I'm thoroughly enjoying this complex tale and will write a proper review when I finish it.
Helpful Score: 1
I did not see so much of this novel coming, so I don't want to say too much. She drew me in with her characters & plot, kept me there with her setting, and then killed me with the plot twists. The pacing is a wee bit slow, but that ending. Geez.
This was the third installment on my literary journey through the Amazon. The first two, River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon and The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey, are historical accounts, while this is a current-day fictional tale. I think the three make lovely companions.
This was the third installment on my literary journey through the Amazon. The first two, River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon and The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey, are historical accounts, while this is a current-day fictional tale. I think the three make lovely companions.
Helpful Score: 1
I usually put a book down if after 50-75 pages it hasn't been a good read. Being a Best Seller I thought it would get better but it became worse as the book went on right to the end. Dry, boring and nearly plotless. A waste of good reading time.
Helpful Score: 1
I have read glowing book reviews of Ann Patchett's STATE OF WONDER as well as negative reader reviews. I'm somewhere in between. I did feel truly transported to the Amazon by the author. I liked the protagonist Marina and her relationship with the native, Easter. Annick Swenson was a wonderfully eccentric scientist. But, parts of the story were unbelievable. Overall, a worthwhile read.
Helpful Score: 1
Check out my full review at Kritters Ramblings
At first, I wasn't falling in love with the story, I just wasn't sure if this would be my kind of book, but once she set sail for the Amazon, the book really started to pick up for me. Patchett takes her time to describe the surroundings, so the reader is easily able to find themselves swept into the Amazon - I could see what the characters were seeing.
At first, I wasn't falling in love with the story, I just wasn't sure if this would be my kind of book, but once she set sail for the Amazon, the book really started to pick up for me. Patchett takes her time to describe the surroundings, so the reader is easily able to find themselves swept into the Amazon - I could see what the characters were seeing.
Helpful Score: 1
This book was recommended to me after I read Euphoria and The People In The Trees and loved them both. I GUESS I can see why someone would see similarities-all three books are set in remote jungles and involve scientific research of some kind, but while the other two books are anthropology-based this book seemed more like a mystery that happened to have a similar setting and characters. I don't know, I get it on one hand, but I didn't really feel in the end like this book had a lot in common with the other two. I feel bad taking off a star because I was kind of misled on what this book was about but I guess that's what I'm doing.
As for this book specifically, it was fine but I didn't find the plot or the characters particularly engaging. The pacing was also kind of weird-it takes half the book to actually get into the Amazon and I don't feel like the earlier stuff was necessarily extraneous but at the same time I'm not sure why there was so much of it. The characters were interesting but I didn't have any real emotional connection with or attachment to any of them, and the ending just sort of drops the relationship between two of the main characters and takes off (literally). Also there's a lot of questions that can be raised about the ethics of pharmaceutical research but I feel like the book didn't really answer any of them and just sort of left them there, abandoned in the jungle. I was able to predict the twist at the ending from a ways back but I don't think it was badly plotted, just one of my more perceptive moments. Basically if you really want to read this book, you probably shouldn't let any of what I'm saying dissuade you since I think part of my disenchantment comes just from expecting a different book going in. That said, while it's a quick read it does have some legitimate issues.
As for this book specifically, it was fine but I didn't find the plot or the characters particularly engaging. The pacing was also kind of weird-it takes half the book to actually get into the Amazon and I don't feel like the earlier stuff was necessarily extraneous but at the same time I'm not sure why there was so much of it. The characters were interesting but I didn't have any real emotional connection with or attachment to any of them, and the ending just sort of drops the relationship between two of the main characters and takes off (literally). Also there's a lot of questions that can be raised about the ethics of pharmaceutical research but I feel like the book didn't really answer any of them and just sort of left them there, abandoned in the jungle. I was able to predict the twist at the ending from a ways back but I don't think it was badly plotted, just one of my more perceptive moments. Basically if you really want to read this book, you probably shouldn't let any of what I'm saying dissuade you since I think part of my disenchantment comes just from expecting a different book going in. That said, while it's a quick read it does have some legitimate issues.
Helpful Score: 1
Phenomenal! This is the best book I've read in a very long time. Both plot and characters are terrific. READ IT!
Helpful Score: 1
One of the best books that I have read in a while. Her writing is wonderful, and the tale is gripping. Beware: this book may cause marital strife. My DH got cross with me because he was talking, I was reading this book and could not tear myself away from the story to concentrate on what he was saying. Like another reviewer, I was sorry when I finished the book because it was such a great read; I wanted more.
I just finished reading this on my Kindle. I found the story engrossing and the characters and setting fascinating. It is the kind of story I expect from Ann Patchett (of whom I am a huge fan) -- it is engrossing and full of unusual but believable characters, the setting is rare but believable, and ethical questions abound. The prose, of course, is beautiful. I could feel the jungle, the river, bugs, plants, snakes -- almost smell it all. I am left not 100% certain of what Dr. Singh chose to do next with her life, but that's OK. One reviewer is certain she went back to the jungle, but I'm not certain -- I can't imagine spending one's entire life in a place like that, no matter the importance of the work. Ann Patchett has once again told an entirely unique story in a strange setting with unforgettable characters. Highly recommended!!
Very different story, very amazing read. Another masterpiece by Ann Patchett.
A very interesting story. A neighbor gave me the book so I thought I would give it a try. Well, I stayed up two nights to read it. I liked it a lot. It was different then other books that I have read, but it captured my interest. I wasn't sure how it would all end up and I am glad that I invested the time in reading it.
This is a story about those do science in the Amazon jungle where insects, snakes, strange animals and heat haunt the scientists every step. Dr. Marina Singh finds herself sent to a remote site where a scientist is working to create a drug to enhance pregnancy in older women. Her assignment is twofold. She is to find out how development of the drug is progressing and she is to discover what happened to a fellow scientist friend who died of a strange fever in this vast jungle.
The theme depicts how the bonds of friendship and love may affect what people do. Patchett humanizes the scientists in contrast with the cold calculating drug company that sponsors the research. Dr. Singh finds herself in a dilemma because her lover is president of the company whose goal above all is to make money, never mind what happens to the humans involved or impacted by the research. It's a good story that is not particularly original but Patchett weaves a well written tale for the reader's enjoyment. Her fans will like this one very much.
The theme depicts how the bonds of friendship and love may affect what people do. Patchett humanizes the scientists in contrast with the cold calculating drug company that sponsors the research. Dr. Singh finds herself in a dilemma because her lover is president of the company whose goal above all is to make money, never mind what happens to the humans involved or impacted by the research. It's a good story that is not particularly original but Patchett weaves a well written tale for the reader's enjoyment. Her fans will like this one very much.
Chasing pharmaceutical discoveries in the back of beyond among indigenous peoples in the Amazon. The lyrical natural wonders didn't get it for me. I was not entranced nor even absorbed. It just kind of wound down at the end, I was expecting more tension. Ah well.
Wow, what a great book. I loved the way the characters developed and the extra short story at the end was so appropriate! Highly recommended.
This novel joined fact with fiction in a beautiful way. It was a little slow at the beginning but wove the tale so nicely that I couldn't put in down half way through. A must read for young girls and not bad for mature ones, too.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I loved the web of intrigue that Patchett spun around her characters and the Amazon setting. I was actually on the edge of my seat for the last 50 pages. Wonderful book club read. Looking forward to discussing it with my group when we meet next month.
I really enjoyed this book, it is well written and interesting, I especially liked the premise of the drug and it's positive side effects and all the details of the jungle and life in it for the researchers and native people.
Another Ann Patchett novel that was a fantastic read. In the Amazon jungle with the Lakashi tribe to discover a new medication with romance and deceit, and underlying stories contributing to the intrigue. Worth the time.
After all the rave reviews, I am in the minority since I didn't like this book. Parts were interesting and I did finish it, but it was too unrealistic to me. Developing a fertility drug so women can get pregnant in their seventies!!! Really??
Except for the elusive Dr. Swenson, I didn't like the characters. Certainly not Dr Marina Singh, a drab, passive research doctor and her weird relationship with Mr. Fox, the head of the research company she works for. I hated the ending, totally unnecessary and uncalled for!
Except for the elusive Dr. Swenson, I didn't like the characters. Certainly not Dr Marina Singh, a drab, passive research doctor and her weird relationship with Mr. Fox, the head of the research company she works for. I hated the ending, totally unnecessary and uncalled for!
Loved this book. Her writing and the subject.
I truly enjoyed this book! Highly recommended. I'd like to read other books by this author now.
Unbelievably realistic story about an unusual topic. the exact reason I read, to broaden my horizons. This is a must read!
