For some reason, when I was younger, I thought Fahrenheit 451 was written in the '80s. It was actually published in 1953. Set in a dystopian future where firemen start fires instead of putting them out, Bradbury writes of the potential influence of mass media on censorship. In Bradbury's world, books are outlawed and firemen are required to burn any found books along with the homes where they were kept. Ray Montag is a fireman who begins to question this censorship along with participating in the unthinkable act of hiding books in his home. When his secret is found out and his co-workers come for him, he is forced to run for his life.
This is a short book and a quick read. I wanted to read something a little different and this was good. It's interesting to take today's world and compare it the future world Bradbury envisioned, not necessarily with respect to censorship of books, but the dumbing down of society through the influence of media. If you're looking for a classic to add to your reading list, check this one out.
Five Days at Memorial details the events that occurred at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans during and immediately following Hurricane Katrina. As to be expected, patients, who remained in hospitals during the hurricane, passed away, but at this particular hospital, an usually large number of deaths occurred, triggering an investigation.
This book was intense.
There was quite a bit of information on the hospital, its ownership, where it's located, etc. The author does a fantastic job of providing that background information in an interesting manner. This extends to her description of medical personnel, patients and patients' families. What these people went through was horrific. Can you imagine providing medical care to patients in a flooded hospital with no power?
Reading this brings up a whole boatload of ethics and morals and when you can't save everyone, who do you save? A doctor and two nurses were accused of prematurely ending patients' lives through a lethal injection of drugs. Why would they do this? Did someone make the decision that not every patient would be evacuated or was there a misunderstanding? Autopsy results do not lie. Or were they inaccurate? Like I said, this book was intense.
Being on the East Coast, we've had our fair share of hurricanes but none can compare to the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. This book can be categorized as investigative journalism. The author really brings you to that location so you have a good sense of what it was like to be there at that time. This book takes a bit of time to get through based on volume but I'd highly recommend it for fans of this type of nonfiction.
Admittedly, I don't (didn't) know much about life in North Korea prior to reading this. Does anyone outside of those who live there know much? This book was written by a woman who escaped right before her 18th birthday. She had intended to leave only for a few days to visit family and see the world outside of North Korea, but she never returned. I learned so much from this book, not only how horrible life in North Korea is, but what happens when one actually escapes. You don't walk into freedom quite so easily. The author risked capture, imprisonment and the unthinkable return to her country. An intriguing read for sure.
In Castle of Water, two strangers find themselves on a small, deserted island hundreds of miles away from civilization after barely surviving a plane crash. One just watched her new husband perish while the other is a wannabe artist looking to escape his previous life. In order to survive, they'll need to put aside their differences and work together. I really liked how this one was written! The author has a way of weaving in information and other parts of the story that made the plot more interesting. I loved how it all flowed together. This isn't chick lit or a sappy love story. I will add that I wasn't particularly a fan of the ending. I think there are some flaws there but still a really, really good book.
To see what I've read so far this year, click here.
To see the list of books I read in 2017, click here.
To see the list of books I read in 2016, click here.
To see the list of books I read in 2015, click here.
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