I want/need/will/look forward to reading this book for several reasons. In no particular order: 1) my Uncle, who's an extremely discriminating reader who rarely reads fiction loves this book. 2) Helprin's A Winter's Tale is one of my favorite novels of all time and I'm told this one is just as good. 3) I love history and find historical backdrops to novels a fantastic way to pick up a little knowledge on the side.

Jon Christensen from Lehi, Utah says:

Rodney Welch from Columbia, SC says:

Simeon Stolzberg says:

Note that this book was published posthumously from notes left behind by the author. Having read it, it's a nice piece of nostalgia and a must-read for any fan of the original seven Great Brain books... but it's definitely not quite as good as the others.

Ok. I'll admit, this book sounds... BORING. But it's supposed to be downright fascinating so heck, I'll read it.

LauraG from Toronto, Ontario says:

I usually don't seek out a book after I've seen a movie version. Yes, the book is almost always better but once you know what's going to happen, the plot no longer matters and it becomes solely an exercise in appreciating the language. In this case though, I was so blown away by the movie I have to read the book. Furthermore, there's an incredible plot twist that worked extremely well in a movie and yet I can't figure out how it would work in a book. Time will tell I suppose. :-)

I came across this book while working on another list. A trusted friend, Dervala, described it as:

"There's lots of joy in this book. It's a clear-eyed and unsentimental look at sickness and death, but a good chunk of it is the story of their unusual marriage and how they lived and worked."

Beyond that, I don't want to learn any more. I trust Dervala and I want to read this book some day and I think it will have that much more impact if I go into it clean.