This week’s Nevermore Book Club started off with a selection
of fiction. Two members recommended The
Pecan Man by Cassie Dandridge Selleck as being a good story set in the
South. One said it reminded her of
Kathryn Stockett’s The Help. The
story begins in Florida in 1976, when widow Ora hires a homeless black man
named Eddie to do odd jobs around the house, mostly yardwork. The man is shunned by many, and referred to
as “Pecan Man.” When the son of the
police chief is stabbed to death, the Pecan Man is charged with the
murder. Twenty five years later, an
elderly Ora decides to look for the truth. This is a first novel by the author.
Next up was a novel by Norwegian author Jo Nesbo, best known
for his mysteries starring Harry Hole. Blood
on Snow is a standalone novel about
a hitman who is quite your usual cold killer.
Olav is indeed very good at what he does, but he is also a thoughtful,
sensitive man. Our reader thought it was
an excellent book.
The Children Act by Mann Booker Prize winner Ian
McEwan takes its title from a British law concerning child welfare. The lead character is a judge who is tasked
with a case concerning a 17 year old boy whose parents’ religious beliefs
preclude a medical procedure which might save their son’s life. Meanwhile, the
judge’s personal life is also coming unraveled. The Nevermore member had just
started the book so no verdict has been reached on this one.
In non-fiction books, the highest praise went to Shocktrauma
by Jon Franklin and Alan Doelp describes the origin of the trauma systems still
in use today in the U.S. The authors
explain the “Golden Hour,” in which trauma victims are more likely to survive
with less lasting damage than if treatment is delayed. The club had a lively discussion about area
trauma centers and how survival rates have gone up because patients don’t have
to go to Knoxville or Charlottesville for treatment. Even though the book came
out in 1980, our readers felt it was still a good overview of the history and
the thinking behind modern trauma centers.
Another medical based book also came in for praise. The Secret of the Yellow Death by
Suzanne Jurmain is a YA book which tells how Walter Reed and a team of doctors unlocked
the secret behind the deadly disease known as Yellow Fever. Our reader said the book was quite the
eye-opener for her, and dispelled a number of misconceptions she’d held about
both Walter Reed and Yellow Fever.
On the lighter side, the same reader recommended David
Sedaris book of essays, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. Sedaris
is known for his sharp wit and ability to weave a story both hilarious and poignant
at the same time. The book contains
twenty two essays covering Sedaris’ life, with about half devoted to childhood.
Bobbi Ann Mason is best known for her novels such as In Country,
but she proves herself just as fine a writer in nonfiction with her memoir Clear
Springs. She presents a vivid
picture of growing up in on a farm in Kentucky in the 1940s, along with the
trials and anxieties of a small town girl who heads off to the city.
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