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It's been out for a bit, I forgot to post it. It's called His Brother's Keeper, and it's about the brothers Jamie and Stephen Heywood. Dad describes Ender's Game as their favorite book as kids. He also spoils the plot twist near the end of the novel. Hate the sin, buy the sinner's book?
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Wow, it sounds like an awesome book! Dude, your dad won a Pulitzer Prize? That rocks! I think I may have read part of this book in the New Yorker (which often has great and thoughtful stuff about medicine).
I have very mixed feelings about the whole subject. Did the reviewer give a fair picture of the book? Is your dad now disenchanted with the whole idea of researching cures? Does he feel about the entire area of gene therapy and stem cell research that it is hubristic and overstepping the bounds of wisdom?
If so, that would be very sad, I think.
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I just ordered the book from Amazon, and the earlier one that won the Pulitzer Prize, too. Both of them sound really good.
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So, where does your dad keep his Pulitzer? Does he ever let you borrow it to take to open mic night, for impressing the girls?
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AK, the reviewer accurately describes how my dad felt at one point, but he's very much past that and is now definitely not down on the idea of researching cures. This is portrayed in the book, so the reviewer isn't being totally accurate. Dad feels he can't complain, though, given how positive and blurbable the review is.
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I guess I worried about that particularly because I think there is a common theme in literature representing technological or scientific advances as hubris. That theme always saddens me, because ... just because I think it's wrong and also misguided. And I would hate it if someone who was a science writer, especially a good one, very especially an influential one who is also good, would further that theme. I'm glad to hear he was just suffering from a letdown of inflated hopes (or so I hope), and has regained a longer more realistic view.
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I remember seeing these brothers (there should be an apostrophe there somewhere, as it's the story of two brothers, hence, it's their story, but I have no idea where OSC's latest column seems to be wearing on me today.) But anyway, I remember seeing their story on 48 Hours. (Right? It was 48 Hours, wasn't it?) I also remember at the time wondering what in the world is wrong with first-borns? I also remember hating that they just left me hanging at the end, with Stephen still sick and Jamie still working on the cure. I wonder how long ago that was? And why do I remember it all this time later? I could be using those few brain cells for important information, but no, I need to remember to obsess about what happened to people I never met. God, I seem to be falling apart.
Posts: 9871 | Registered: Aug 2001
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Thanks. That's what I was thinking, but then I remembered what I'd read in OSC's column about people who just give up and randomly stick apostrophes in there. That's where the real drama occurred. Should I just randomly stick one in there? Stick it where I thought it should go? Leave it out. After stewing on it for a while, shedding a few tears, and realizing that I'm an emotional mess right now, I decided to just leave it without one and know that you would come along and tell me the correct way of doing it. (And I don't mean that to sound snide. I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want to know. So, thanks. =)
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Scientific American also gave this book a favorable review.
I'm reading Finch now and it's very good, though I think it's aimed at a more mainstream audience than a hard core science geek like me, perhaps.
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