Anyway, I just finished Zoe Heller’s, The Believers about a left wing family in New York who truly gives new meaning to the term ‘dysfunctional’. Containing the most obnoxious harridan found in modern literature, this was like sitting fascinated watching two trains collide. Not always the most pleasant of reading, but enthralling, humorous (!) and unputdownable.

Very different, set in the near future that is now, was Richard Powers’ Generosity about a young woman who is so happy that she’s dubbed Miss Generosity by her fellow students. She is also the target of a modern day Barnum gene researcher who wants to package her happy genetic disposition to clone others. This is not true science fiction (which I usually don’t read) but so close to today’s culture of celebrity that I found myself gasping at the parallels with today’s society. Powers’ superb writing ability didn’t hurt either.

Then of course, my very favorite of the year was Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese. Set for the most part in Ethiopia it deals with twin sons of an Indian nun (who dies in childbirth) and an American doctor who flees. Raised by doctors who adopt them, they too, become physicians who go disparate ways but end up in the United States where one saves the life of the other. This was a great read and my description here doesn’t do justice to the plot, the characters or the stellar writing. If there was just one novel to read last year, this would be my first choice of many splendid offerings.

Cheers,

Warren Cassell
Portland, Oregon