MT Buddy Read The Anatomy of Deception

[Ann]

The Anatomy of Deception by Lawrence Goldstone is a new buddy read for mid-January 2015.
We'll keep all of the posts under this one thread and label comments by our progress in the book and indicate and mask spoiler comments using the "some html is ok" instructions at the upper right of the comment box.
General comments are ok without spoiler notation but please indicate early in your comment for the place you reference up to in the book. Thanks!
All are welcome to participate in discussions for this book nominated by Shomeret.

[Carol/Bonadie]

My copy just came in to the library; will pick it up on Saturday. Now, I have to decide whether to read it or Ordinary Grace. Yikes, you people are hell on my tbr piles, LOL! I'll never get to my determination reads at this pace! (or maybe I will, with a little determination, after football season is over....)

[Ann]

I hear you Carol! I am going to do both, so far doing Ordinary Grace in print and will listen to the buddy read. I'm using the theory of less backlit screen time before bed as the impetus to continue with the large print copy.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: "My copy just came in to the library; will pick it up on Saturday. Now, I have to decide whether to read it or Ordinary Grace. Yikes, you people are hell on my tbr piles, LOL! "

[Carol/Bonadie]

Oh, good thinking, Ann. I should do that too. My sleeping patterns have been irregular and I put it down to aging, but it would probably be better to reduce my backlit screen time before bed too just in case.

Ann wrote: "I hear you Carol! I am going to do both, so far doing Ordinary Grace in print and will listen to the buddy read. I'm using the theory of less backlit screen time before bed as the impetus to contin..."

[Shomeret]

I just started it and already had some thoughts about the MC's discussion of Sherlock Holmes as a new obsession among doctors. I wondered about how much influence the popularity of Sherlock Holmes had on politicians. Perhaps Sherlock Holmes was a major impetus in bringing about the legalization of autopsies. The first Holmes story appeared in 1887 which is two years before this novel is set.

[Carol/Bonadie]

I picked up the print and audio versions yesterday, so I should get started today. Unless birthday and football celebrations get in the way, LOL!

[Ann]

I hope the Birthday celebrations are fun, Carol! Happy early Birthday to you, will you celebrate all week as usual?
I am two thirds through the audio book and wish I had a print copy too. I'm looking forward to the discussions.

[Shomeret]

I am learning so much about the way medicine was practiced in the late 19th century, and how some very important changes happened. I read up to chapter fourteen yesterday.

[Shomeret]

I thought I'd ask a question. It occurred to me as I was reading through some very detailed description of medical procedures with fascination, that some readers would find this very dry reading. I wouldn't fault anyone for having this problem. So I thought I'd put it out there as a discussion question. Is this book too dry? Is it difficult reading?

[Ann]

Shomeret: Yes, we do learn a great deal about the practice of medicine and the presentation of facts, dates and the people credited with discoveries that improved "modern" medicine is very smoothly delivered. I have caught myself listening frequently wishing I could go look up some of the references. Fascinating (and often shudder-worthy) details are emerging. No wonder life expectancy was so low in the 19th century.
I assume that the author did a great deal of research for this book which I appreciate. I am going to look for evidence of that after I finish, which looks to be tomorrow, as I am curious about the motivations for writing this book. I hadn't looked up anything on the author before starting out. I have an hour left to go on the audio. I think I am at chapter 26.

Carol: the book had nine segments on Overdrive of the length similar to a CD length. I assume you have 8-9 CD's on your version? I have an hour plus round trip commute so expect to finish on the way home tomorrow if it rains as expected and if I don't spend some time in the fitness center on it at lunch.

[Shomeret]

You're further along than I am, Ann. I'm in chapter 23, but I also think that I'll finish the book today.

The author's website is at http://www.lawrencegoldstone.com/inde...

Here's an interview that Goldstone did which deals with his research and motivation for writing this book.

http://www.watchmojo.com/video/id/6837/

[Ann]

Thanks for the links Shomeret! I'm nervous about reading or watching them before I finish the book, tomorrow, sigh.sometimes audio books can be frustrating near the end. I could gallop through a print copy tonight.

[Sandi]

Shomeret wrote: "I thought I'd ask a question. It occurred to me as I was reading through some very detailed description of medical procedures with fascination, that some readers would find this very dry reading. ..."

I'm listening to the audio so am only up to around chapter 7 but so far the medical descriptions have been the parts of the book I have found the most interesting. Am not sure yet about the mystery plotting though.

[Shomeret]

Sandi wrote: "Shomeret wrote: "I thought I'd ask a question. It occurred to me as I was reading through some very detailed description of medical procedures with fascination, that some readers would find this v..."

The mystery aspect starts late. There's a great deal of background and character relationship development before it starts.

[Ann]

Shomeret: I didn't find it dry reading at all, but then this sort of period detail is of interest to me. I think it was mentioned before that the book sounded like Caleb Carr's The Alienist which I very much enjoyed. Also, for me at least, detail comes across very well on audio; I am able to walk or drive and the narration paints a picture in my mind of what the setting, time period and people were like.
Shomeret wrote: "I thought I'd ask a question. It occurred to me as I was reading through some very detailed description of medical procedures with fascination, that some readers would find this very dry reading. ..."

[Ann]

I am planning to pick up the hardback of this book next Saturday as I would like to study some of the medical details and references more closely. I was struck that if I was at all familiar with Philadelphia that the descriptions of the various buildings, streets and places as they were in the 1880's would be of great interest. I wonder Carol, since you have Philly ties how the setting resonates with you?

[Shomeret]

Did you finish it, Ann? I did and gave it four stars. Were you satisfied by the ending? Do you think that the MC did the right thing in the end?

[Ann]

Shomeret: I haven't finished it yet, still holding out for tomorrow as listening for a full hour isn't easy for me to do after I finish my daily walk on a day without a commute. I am very eager to see how it ends!

[Carol/Bonadie]

Hi Ann,

Yes, I started with a birthday brunch yesterday. One of the things think I may do this week is drive down to Patriot's Place, the huge retail complex next to Gillette Stadium. I've always wanted to see it and after a playoff win seems like a good time to go! There's one of those luxury movie theaters there too so I may go to see Wild, the Reese Witherspoon movie. Have got dinner plans, and later this week my two besties and I are going to dinner and a Latin jazz concert at the local jazz club. I guess that makes a week-long celebration, doesn't it, LOL?

Ann wrote: "I hope the Birthday celebrations are fun, Carol! Happy early Birthday to you, will you celebrate all week as usual?..."

[Carol/Bonadie]

Ann, I have 9 CDs on my version. I also have the print copy from the library. It looks like there are 27 chapters, they are not titled.

I see Goldstone has written another book but I assume this is not a series.

Ann wrote: "Carol: the book had nine segments on Overdrive of the length similar to a CD length. I assume you have 8-9 CD's on your version? I have an hour plus round trip commute so expect to finish on the way home tomorrow if it rains as expected and if I don't spend some time in the fitness center on it at lunch. .."

[Shomeret]

Carol/Bonadie wrote: "Ann, I have 9 CDs on my version. I also have the print copy from the library. It looks like there are 27 chapters, they are not titled.

I see Goldstone has written another book but I assume this..."

Yes, this is a standalone. Goldstone has written many books, but the only other mystery takes place in the 16th century and is also a standalone.

[Ann]

I finished the book on the way home today and particularly enjoyed the epilogue and the tying up of some loose threads (view spoiler)[ and the follow-up on lives and careers from the perspective of four decades. I almost always find that type of ending gratifying to read and this one was particularly so. (hide spoiler)]
My next spoiler is about the ending (view spoiler)[
Yes, Shomeret, right now I think I do agree with Dr. Carroll's decision to drop the pursuit of Halstead (not sure about the spelling) and let the family of the murdered young doctor grieve in peace. At first I was not so sure, though not surprised that he did drop his pursuit of the truth; the murder of his innocent friend in prison removed most of the purpose as the rest of the damage and loss of life could not be recovered. The police weren't that interested, and it could have backfired based on their potential to be bought.
My reasons include the danger that Ephraim has already escaped, and recognizes his realization that knowing the truth doesn't really do anything to make the tragic death of Rebecca ok. (hide spoiler)]

[Shomeret]

Another issue involving this case is a spoiler
(view spoiler)[Halstead didn't intentionally kill Rebecca. So it couldn't be called murder. He could have been charged with negligent homicide since he was knowingly performing surgery while in an impaired state. The fact that the impairment involved being denied the drug to which he was addicted was ironic, but it was still impairment. (hide spoiler)]

[Ann]

Shomeret: regarding your spoiler in comment 23, this goes through the end of the book. (view spoiler)[
Re: that Halstead would not have been guilty of murdering Rebecca, rather, due to impairment, guilty of negligent homicide. Good point. It seems scandal was of more concern than doing the right thing to allow Rebecca's family to know what happened and bury their daughter.

What a tragedy that attempts to escape the fate of an out of wedlock pregnancy meant so much worse would befall her. I found the vignettes introducing Rebecca's happy anticipation of the night she was raped by Albert Benedict very poignant, and so many of the events preventable. George Turk comes across as the most unsympathetic character, unless you indict Osler more for his pragmatic cover-up. Most others are only mildly sympathetic at best, making poor choices, ruining their lives and callously leading to the lost life of innocent Farnshaw. (hide spoiler)]

[Shomeret]

Re sympathetic characters which leads to a spoiler (view spoiler)[Dr. Mary Simpson is a very sympathetic character. I wanted to know more about her settlement house. There was a more famous settlement house in Chicago called Hull House. Here's an article about settlement houses http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/immigratio... Mary was abandoned when she was pregnant, but she made the choice of keeping the child rather than abortion. Both are difficult and brave choices. (hide spoiler)]

[Ann]

Very good point about a specific sympathetic character, Shomeret. I am looking forward to having time to enjoy the links you have provided. There was much in the book to follow-up on.
The forensics aspect was another as the autopsy details were revealed, I had not realized that autopsies were specifically illegal until around this time period. The medical details about breakthroughs and counter to current knowledge practices plus the pharmaceutical history were fascinating.

[Shomeret]

Ann wrote: "Very good point about a specific sympathetic character, Shomeret. I am looking forward to having time to enjoy the links you have provided. There was much in the book to follow-up on.
The forensi..."

Because autopsies were illegal, medical schools had to surreptitiously employ "resurrection men", as they were called, to steal corpses from cemeteries so that medical students could learn human anatomy. The first doctors who wanted to advance the knowledge of anatomy actually stole corpses themselves. See this article on 18th century medical pioneer John Hunter at http://www.jameslindlibrary.org/illus...

[Ann]

Dr Frankenstein wasn't quite so "out there" was he? ;)

[Carol/Bonadie]

Am several chapters in now and enjoying the book. I had to make a note to myself from the first chapter to not read/listen while I was eating, LOL. Still, the descriptions of operating room practice at the time is fascinating. The scene where (view spoiler)[the man with diverticulitis was being operated on by a less than careful surgeon (hide spoiler)] was both horrifying and sad (as one thought about the patient).

[Carol/Bonadie]

I'm not looking at your spoiler comments yet bec I don't know up to what point they are spoilers, so you may have discussed this. But the scene where Carroll goes to the settlement house with Simpson was informative. Interesting to think about the plight of women raising children alone at that time, with the social stigma of it. It was also interesting when Simpson said something about abortions being horrible. I couldn't tell whether she was talking about the situations under which abortions could only be performed, or the moral argument, but it did remind me about how dangerous if not impossible a choice it was back then.

[Shomeret]

Carol/Bonadie wrote: "I'm not looking at your spoiler comments yet bec I don't know up to what point they are spoilers, so you may have discussed this. But the scene where Carroll goes to the settlement house with Simp..."

Yes, the spoiler that I wrote about sympathetic characters was about Dr. Mary Simpson, settlement houses and options for women with unwanted pregnancies. But there's also a spoiler about Mary Simpson about something that doesn't get revealed until very close to the end of the book. So you probably shouldn't look at it until you've finished.

[Carol/Bonadie]

I'm loving that this takes place in Philadelphia, where I grew up. I'm curious about the various figures that Carroll encounters, but will look them up to see who is real and who is imagined. One real person whose involvement with Carroll is imagined is painter Thomas Eakins, many of whose paintings are housed in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It was so interesting to hear about his life in the context of this story. I will be looking up others mentioned, particularly the physicians.

[Shomeret]

Carol/Bonadie wrote: "I'm loving that this takes place in Philadelphia, where I grew up. I'm curious about the various figures that Carroll encounters, but will look them up to see who is real and who is imagined. One..."

I had heard of Thomas Eakins, but I wasn't aware that he also instructed other artists. The impressionists in France turned out to be more influential which is something that he never imagined.

[Ann]

Carol: Possibly under one of my spoilers, I commented that I was eager to hear what you thought of the Philadelphia we read about in the 19th century. I was fascinated by the setting details and the references to people who made significant impact on medicine, at least some of whom I assumed might be based on real people.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: "I'm loving that this takes place in Philadelphia, where I grew up. I'm curious about the various figures that Carroll encounters, but will look them up to see who is real and who is imagined."
I am jealous that you can go see some of Thomas Eakins' paintings in the museum and study them with a new eye to detail now.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: "One real person whose involvement with Carroll is imagined is painter Thomas Eakins, many of whose paintings are housed in the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It was so interesting to hear about his life in the context of this story. I will be looking up others mentioned, particularly the physicians."

[Carol/Bonadie]

I didn't find this dry at all. Well maybe a little, in the beginning, until I got used to it. I DID find it gross, if interesting -- I stopped eating anything while listening to it, LOL.

Shomeret wrote: "I thought I'd ask a question. It occurred to me as I was reading through some very detailed description of medical procedures with fascination, that some readers would find this very dry reading. ..."

[Carol/Bonadie]

I've just finished the book, and enjoyed it greatly. Re the ending (view spoiler)[I was a little disappointed that "justice" wasn't served, that is that Albert Benedict didn't pay for his assault of Rebecca and that Oster and Halstead didn't pay for their actions/nonactions, and finally that the killer(s) of Farnshaw got away scot free. But, I supposed it fit. (hide spoiler)]

I did enjoy the epilogue with the updating of the lives of the major characters.

[Carol/Bonadie]

I was greatly interested in the use of real life figures in this book. I've mentioned Eakins above. I didn't know who else was real, and a Google search quickly uncovered that Halstead was real. (view spoiler)[this sent me on a tailspin about the use of real people in a fiction novel, and especially attributing crimes and bad behavior to them. I suppose that must be ethical, or an editor wouldn't permit it, but I felt uneasy about that. If I were a Halstead heir, I wouldn't be wild about someone attributing the accidental death and a poisoning death to my ancestor. Shomoret, I suppose you can shed some light on this practice on the part of authors. Is it kosher? (hide spoiler)]

I am going to look up some of the other characters also. I found all the references to the beginning of Johns Hopkins Medical Center fascinating. I worked there for a summer in a dermatology research lab right before going to grad school.

[Shomeret]

Response to Carol's spoiler discussion about a guilty party in this novel. (view spoiler)[I've seen authors attributing deaths to real historical individuals in other books. Traditional publishers have lawyers who would object if they thought it would cause problems. Indie publishers may not have lawyers and should avoid publishing books like this one. So should self-published authors. Yet I think the more important question is whether it's ethical. This did occur to me when I was reading this book. Is it right to attribute crimes to a real historical individual such as Halstead who was not known for having killed anyone--accidentally or otherwise? After all, Halstead can't defend himself from such a scandalous portrayal. (hide spoiler)]

[Ann]

Carol and Shomeret: Not realizing that the character(s) in question were based on real people at the time I read (view spoiler)[ about the speculations does make for a bit of a shock that they were portrayed as involved in the criminal activity. "Professor" Osler, also a real person, was not unscathed in this portrayal. The fact that the author writes non fiction history is also interesting that he would fictionalize criminal activity under the activity of these men. (hide spoiler)] Usually there is a disclaimer at the beginning of a book stating that the author didn't intend to depict a specific person, living or dead, no matter the resemblance to a character in the story. (poorly paraphrased)

[Ann]

Carol: re your comment #36, the spoiler about the ending (view spoiler)[ I actually wondered if Albert Benedict actually did get away scot-free, when it was said in the epilogue that he was run down by a carriage in 1892 while overseas. I wondered if perhaps Rebecca Lachtmann's father had something to do with that accident. Abigail also seemed to have paid in a way with her exile from the United States.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: "I was a little disappointed that "justice" wasn't served, that is that Albert Benedict didn't pay for his assault of Rebecca " (hide spoiler)]

[Carol/Bonadie]

I agree with your comments in #40, Ann. On another point, (view spoiler)[I was surprised at the Benedicts' willingness to uproot their entire lives to protect the despicable acts of Albert Benedict, especially to the daughter of a close friend, if I'm remembering that right, but I suppose that was a sign of the times, and they had the wealth to be able to do that. (hide spoiler)]

Ann wrote: "Carol: re your comment #36, the spoiler about the ending ..."

[Carol/Bonadie]

Another comment on several aspects of the ending:

#1 on Carroll and Abigail (view spoiler)[I was not entirely sold on the romance between Carroll and Abigail. She was a bit too unconventional to be a good match for Carroll. (hide spoiler)]

#2 on Simpson (view spoiler)[the mention of a spoiler related to Simpson earlier in our discussions had me wondering for the rest of the book if she had been the novice or impaired surgeon who had attempted an abortion on Rebecca Lachtmann. Unlikely, but you know how your mind works when you're in the middle of a plot! But I saw eventually that the spoiler was that she had a son. I did wonder at several points if she and Carroll would become romantically involved, or if she was carrying a torch for him, so i thought the way that was resolved at the end made sense. I had to say Carroll's proposal came a little out of nowhere, but who knows? (hide spoiler)]

[Ann]

Carol yes, 're: Mary Simpson (view spoiler)[ I also initially thought she and Carrol might have ended up together, and I thought they would have been well matched. The idea that Abigail and he would have been a couple seemed far fetched, and not just for her money and "social standing", it was more a feeling that she was just using him. I thought she was involved with Thomas Eakin, more so than I guess it turned out.
As for Simpson turning him down, I generally applauded that reaction, though it surprised me a bit as I thought she liked him. I was expecting them to investigate the mystery of the dead woman together. (hide spoiler)]