Why are we born? Why is anyone born? I know the technicalities, I mean I am thirteen, and listen when my older brother pontificates like a professor on the subject; but, the birds and the bees really isn’t my question.
I want to know why people are born. What circumstances led to their creation? This fascinates me since I am a special case, and unlike any other human in the entire world. So, my question remains. Why are we born?
From most of my adult queries, I can conclude mistakes happen. A little love (but not always) and plenty of passion (again, not always) produce alarming results nine months later. Yes, I realize there are planned pregnancies; but for me, I wish I was a mistake.
See, I was genetically designed—eliminated from a possible six eggs—to match my sick sister Kate’s molecular structure. My name is Anna, Anna Fitzgerald, and I am my sister’s keeper; a test tube baby born with the power to save a specific life.
At first I really was not involved. It was my mother’s unbiblical cord with its rich nutrients that sustained Kate’s treatment and put her into remission from acute promyelocytic leukemia. This nightmare began for her at age two; fortunately, she is 16-years-old thanks to me.
Over time my parents have allowed the doctors and nurses to take my platelets, leukocytes, stem cells, and bone marrow without asking. These “uncomfortable” procedures place me in the hospital for days recovering. I could almost say as much as Kate, but with none of the attention.
Now, they want my kidney, and again they assume I’ll give it without question. This is why I stopped by Campbell Alexander’s law office and now have a petition for medical emancipation.
Written in 2004 by Jodi Picoult, My Sister’s Keeper became a crossover sensation. Such as a country song that plays on pop stations, this book written for adults became a huge hit in the teen realistic genre. Among the many awards, My Sister’s Keeper was presented an Alex in 2005 by the American Libraries Association which honors crossovers.
The book is currently in production at New Line Cinema with Cameron Diaz playing the part of Sara, Kate and Anna’s mother. Ew, I cannot wait.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
My Sister's Keeper (copy)
Friday, April 25, 2008
I'm Challenged!
First, I joined Joy at Thoughts of Joy for her 2nd annual Nonfiction Five Challenge. I vow to read 5 nonfiction books between the months May - September. Not really a challenge (I love NF) but a chance for me to gain a sense of accomplishment. You know, build my self-esteem. :D
Secondly, I joined a new (to me) blogger, Jeff at BearCastle, for his Science Book Challenge. For this challenge one has all year to read three science books. Jeff has been very helpful and his Book Notes section is excellent.I've not spoken of this, but I'm a committee member of the Outstanding Books for the College Bound and Lifelong Learners for American Libraries Association. Within this committee I am on a smaller Science and Technology subcommittee which will pick 25 S&T books for the list. So far we have 5 books we are considering, and we pick in June. Please, if you have any suggestion, leave a comment.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Year of Living Biblically (copy)
I noticed a theme running through recent books read. Most stories occur within a year time frame. For example, Mudbound focuses on the first year the McAllans dwell on the farm. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was written in a year by a victim of stroke who communicated through eye blinking. In High Cotton one follows Zack Killebrew through a full year of cotton production. Even this year’s book discussion choice, Eat, Pray, Love, takes place within a calendar year.
Continuing the theme, The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs, is packed with twelve months of entertainment. Author Jacobs is a writer for Esquire magazine and author of The Know-It-All where he read the Encyclopædia Britannica from A to Z. This new book is another daunting task which he manages to write without being sacrilegious.
Jacobs plans to spend a year taking the Bible literally and growing closer to God. First, he cannot decide which version of the Bible to follow, thus he gathers a stack: Revised Standard Version, King James Version, Good News Bible, Torah, and a copy of The Bible for Dummies. Secondly, he needs to omit dangerous rules. Any rule that ask one to cut off or gouge out a body part is skipped. If, by freak accident, he kills another man’s cow, he will pay for said cow instead of purchasing one to kill in return. Thirdly, he must breakdown the Bible parts to thoroughly cover all rules. His decision turns out to be the format of the book, eight months (first eight chapters) within the Old Testament and the rest within the New Testament. Lastly, he needs advisers such as rabbis, ministers, and priests with both conservative and liberal backgrounds. Furthermore, he promises to visit with, “the ultra-Orthodox Jews, the ancient sect of Samaritans, and the Amish.” On day 46 he actually out visits a visiting Jehovah Witness.
By day 62, Jacobs is becoming comfortable obeying rules; although, many like the wearing of tassels still baffle him, but now he faces Leviticus 20:27, “They shall be stoned with stones, their blood shall be upon them.” He knows legally he cannot heap stones at another person. His solution (loophole) is to gather small pebbles from New York City’s Central Park and pummel people. Every Saturday and Sunday he walks by the newspaper guy and chucks pebbles at the small of his back for not observing the Sabbath. The funny thing, the man never feels them.
After reading The Year of Living Biblically, I now have a better understanding of the word literal as it pertains to the Bible.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Mudbound (copy)
My name is Mrs. Henry McAllan, but most people call me Laura. For a long time, 31 years, it was Miss. Chappell, and I was okay with that. I earned a college degree in English and began teaching, letting my students pull me through life, never once becoming low for the children I would never have. I was quite comfortable in my old maid(ness).
Henry is handsome, quiet, and college educated. My brother Teddy brought him to dinner because they got along so well at work. At 41 years, Henry was working for the Corps of Engineers building bridges, levees, and airports in the outlying area of Memphis. Well, from the looks I gathered at dinner, he was ready to build a fence around me. How little did I know.
We married, settled down in our own house in Memphis, and I had two little girls. Things again were comfortable until December 25, 1945. On arrival to the annual Christmas dinner at the home of Henry’s sister, Eboline, in Greenville, Mississippi, we were affronted by Pappy, my cantankerous father-in-law who informed us, “Eboline’s husband’s gone and ruint Christmas, killing himself on the eve of Jesus’ birth.”
After weeks of settling Eboline’s affairs, Henry returned home in a new truck. Before I could quiz him, he shocked me with a passionate kiss. This is not my Henry, something was foul. He then blurted out, “I’ve bought a farm!”
The plan was simple. Live in a rental house close to Eboline in Greenville, and Henry would commute to the farm 40 miles away. Pappy would be moving in with us, since Eboline’s move to a smaller house, and I would put up with his criticism of me and the girls.
The rental house was a two-story Victorian with wrap-around porch and azaleas in front. As we climbed the steps, we noticed a light on. While Henry worked the key, a man opened the door from inside, and he wasn’t happy. See, the house was sold to him the previous week which made us trespassers.
Out of 300 dollars and forced to live in one of the sharecropper's houses on the farm, I’m not happy. Matter-of-fact, I’m constantly angry. Dang dirt is in our clothes, laying atop all the furniture, and giving us all tans. Even my tow-colored sweet babies have brown hair. When Henry suggests we call the place “Fair Fields” my mumbled answer becomes family legend. “More like Mudbound.”
Mudbound by Hillary Jordan is one of the best southern novels I have read in years. Better than The Secret Life of Bees, she has successfully written a racial tale akin to Flannery O’Connor and Erskine Caldwell. The perfect book for discussion, too.
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Thursday, April 10, 2008
Happy B-lated Spring!
Spring 2008Wednesday, April 09, 2008
The Anatomist (copy)
Thank goodness the writers’ strike is over. Now, I can look forward to a new episode in popular drama, Grey’s Anatomy. I so miss my McDreamy and McSteamy.
To pass the time during reruns, I picked up The Anatomist: A True Story of Gray’s Anatomy by Bill Hayes.
For those unfamiliar with Gray’s Anatomy, it is the quintessential reference book for medical students. In its 20th printing, this tome sits alongside other upper-echelon classic references such as Webster’s Dictionary and Bulfinch’s Mythology. First printed in 1858, this year marks 150 years as a viable medical textbook.
Author Hayes feels his whole life has led him to writing, “a book about a book about anatomy.” He cites two childhood favorite activities. First, his two best friends had doctor fathers who kept their medical books on the top most shelves in their respective studies. The boys would sneak in and pull down favorites then hide under desks mulling over the medical deformities for hours.
The second activity gave Hayes a great power over his sisters. In his 1965 World Book Encyclopedia, under H for Human Body, there were transparencies which included systems such as the skeletal, muscular, digestive, etc. Hayes took great pleasure in taunting his unsuspecting sisters with Encyclopedia Man.
While searching the book for a medical spelling Hayes thought, Who wrote this thing? The title page gave little more than Henry Gray, F.R.S. or Fellow of the Royal Society (of London). Further digging at his local library left him discouraged. “Fascinating ‘biographies’ have been written about everything from the number zero to the color mauve, yet there is not one on Gray.”
In Hayes’ research, he discovers Gray’s rise at St. George’s Hospital in London through title changes; “postmortem examiner (1854), curator of the Anatomical Museum (1852), lecturer in anatomy (1854), and so forth.” It is only through Gray’s illustrator Henry Vandyke Carter (an extensive diarist) that Hayes begins to unravel Gray’s personality.
In The Anatomist, Hayes alternates between Carter’s diaries and his own experiences in modern-day anatomy class. I’m not sure what is more interesting, the intimate thoughts of a Victorian medical student or Hayes’ voice as he dissects the human body.
Readers of this book will find themselves counting ribs, poking sternums, and trying to finger their mental foramen during the anatomy class sections, all without the unpleasant funk of formaldehyde.
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Cadaver Lab like Library?
“Before leaving the room, I clutched the doorframe and took a last look around. Even with the harsh lights, the well-scrubbed linoleum, and the funk of formaldehyde, it seemed less like a lab than like a library—a place where not only human anatomy but the spirit of anatomical discovery is preserved. And there, in the far back corner, I could easily imagine a small man in a black coat, Henry Gray. He had been here all this time silently working.”
The Anatomist: A True Story of Gray’s Anatomy
by Bill Hayes
p. 61
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Someday My Prince will Come (copy)
For Jerramy Fine the obsession started at the tender age of four. While visiting with her grandparents she was allowed to watch the wedding of Princess Diana and Prince Charles. Not the actually event, mind you, but a taped version. And just as all four-year-olds do, she watched the video over and over as if it were “The Lion King” or “Shrek.”
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Published...
Please, I'm not looking for sympathy, I'm just being painfully honest.
I'm thankful the editor gave me this chance and I hope she doesn't get any flack for it.
The article is titled Reading + Blogging = One Perfect Summer Program. Sounds promising, right!?! Not!!!
It is based on the Southern Reading Program I hosted this past summer which includes a few of you bloggers. This is where I made a major mistake. I didn't use any quotes from participants. The blogs used include A Novel Challenge, Booking Through Thursday, Bookworms Carnival, and Reading Matters.
I wish I could feel better about this. :(
