Dr. Swenson--strong feelings from anyone else?

[Nora]

I just stayed annoyed with Marina for not growing up.

[Nora]

And how big a revelation is it that a woman in her 70's might want to rethink getting pregnant. Really?

[Nora]

Poor Easter. What a sweet little character he was, not deserving be stolen or swapped for reasons he can't understand.

Swenson's not the only one to put work before everything else, but the others seem to be capable of learning!

[Judy]

I hate to admit that I didnt finish this book. I just disliked every character so much that I didnt care how the story ended.

[Judy]

I got to the point where Marina had decided ( against
all common sense) to travel inland with Dr.Swenson.
It was rememiscent of when the girl goes down to the basement in a horror movie. The only character I liked was Easter.

[Jennie]

If you are at all fascinated by the Amazonian cannibals I highly recommend Keep the River on Your Right by Tobias Schneebaum. I think I will be re-reading it soon.

[Donna]

I had really enjoyed all Ann Patchett's other books. Bel Canto is one of my favorite all-time books. I was looking forward to reading this but had to force my way through it. None of the characters were particularly likable and although Anthropology classes were always my favorite, I just didn't care that much about the story. Very disappointing.

[Niki]

Judy wrote: "I got to the point where Marina had decided ( against
all common sense) to travel inland with Dr.Swenson.
It was rememiscent of when the girl goes down to the basement in a horror movie. The only..."

Easter was a great character, and you should probably be glad that you didn't finish the book, I liked it except the very end.

[Carol]

I loved this book. I think all the characters grew and changed, even Dr. Swenson. She was a bully, but I think she had reasons... some past experiences that made her turn hard. It was not spelled out explicitly, but something made me feel a tad sympathetic toward her (after a while). She knew she had made a mistake by getting pregnant, and she had to put her trust in Marina to help her survive. I think that was very hard for her, to "stoop" to that point of depending on someone else. Somewhere in her heart she knew it was a bad idea to take Easter out of his environment, but at the same time she wanted him, selfishly... she is a very complicated person. I loved how Marina changed and evolved a lot in the story. At first she is afraid and sort of morbidly fascinated by Dr. Swenson. By the end, I think she sees Dr. Swenson as a person with flaws and good/bad traits just like everyone. I was sad that Marina and Anders had the one-time love connection, but it was believable under the circumstances, I thought.

[Arlene]

I did not like the love affair at the end once she found Anders. I thought she betrayed Anders wife.

[Amie]

I loved this book. I also thought Dr. Swenson was a bully, however, I understood her determination to succeed in her work at all costs. I thought that as time went by, she realized she had made mistakes but didn't know there was any way to undo them. I thought she softened toward the end and almost felt sorry for her when Easter was returned. This was the only time I felt her emotion overide her intellect.

[Kay]

Arlene wrote: "I did not like the love affair at the end once she found Anders. I thought she betrayed Anders wife."

I have to agree. I guess what happens in the jungle, stays in the jungle.

[Shelley]

@Mary. Bel Canto is great and I really liked The Magicians Assistant, another one of my favorites.

[Linda]

I agree that that State of Wonder was not up to the level of Bel Canto and The Magician's Assistant. I have read everything she has written, I think. I loved Bel Canto and The Magician's Assistant.

[Judy]

Felt that Dr. Swenson was true to form throughout the novel; like her or not. I found the build-up to the interesting 100 pages in the Amazon was too much work but Patchett's writing style kept me going.

[Stephanie]

I was horrified by the Anders/Marina affair at the end. I literally dropped the book and said, "Shut the front door!" My husband thought I was crazy. I knew all along, though, that she was building up to doing it with someone because of all the bark she was eating and some of the other clues thrown down along the way. I was still horrified that she did it with Anders. Ugh... :p

[Laura]

Personally, I didn't like any of the characters except for Easter and Milton. I didn't connect with Marina at all and thought she seemed a bit dull. I too was horrified by her affair with Anders at the end of the book.

[Dave]

Dr. Swenson was a terrific and compelling character even if she was totally unlikeable. I thought her lack of compassion for anything except the greater good and Easter made for a good dichotomy.

The affair at the end was a good exclamation point on the total transformation of the characters/relationships involved.

[J]

I enjoyed not liking Dr Swenson. My dislike for her was part of the fun of reading the book.

[Terry]

At the end of the book, when I realized she had lied about Anders and lied about Easter, I began to dislike her. That led me to more dislike about her character - her imperiousness, her lack of empathy. Yes, she was complex. And no, I didn't like her, drug companies lack of morality notwithstanding.

[Heatherrw]

Arlene wrote: "I did not like the love affair at the end once she found Anders. I thought she betrayed Anders wife."

I agree. I think the ending was rushed and there were far too many out of character changes that it became unbelievable. I didn't like Marina from the beginning and just when I was starting to like her she went back to her old self and the story ended abruptly over Anders. Her purpose there seemed to mean more to her than just a rescue after time and then all of sudden she's Marina from the lab again.

[Heatherrw]

Mary wrote: "I've just finished reading this book and have some very strong feelings towards the character of Dr. Swenson. Mostly of anger since I viewed her as a bully. It has been a long time since a fictio..."

I thought Ann Patchett did a great job making me feel Marina's attitude toward her initially. However, as the story went on I liked her enthusiasm,command, and commitment.

[Shanle]

Arlene wrote: "I did not like the love affair at the end once she found Anders. I thought she betrayed Anders wife."

I had a hard time with this part too. I had to just hurry along to see what the real end was going to be like.

[Shanle]

This was the first book of hers I had ever read. It was not a feel-good, beach read for sure. I never liked Dr Swenson and should have realized she was pregnant alot earlier than when she said so. I felt so bad for the Easter character, but I was so surprised that they found the supposed dead doctor. I just felt terrible for his wife and kids. So many of the characters were so selfish, not selfless. That does describe humanity quite a bit. It is a sad statement of truth to know that pharmaceutical companies would rather have a fertility drug, than a malaria cure.

[Barbara]

Mary wrote: "I've just finished reading this book and have some very strong feelings towards the character of Dr. Swenson. Mostly of anger since I viewed her as a bully. It has been a long time since a fictio..."

[Barbara]

I adore Dr. Swenson. She is strong and unconventional and devoted her life to something amazing. Think bigger!

[Barbara]

Arlene wrote: "I did not like the love affair at the end once she found Anders. I thought she betrayed Anders wife."

I guess you. haven't ever been in an intense situation with someone. When it's over, there's an overwhelming sense of unity. This scene is entirely believable.