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Title: Ship Fever by Andrea Barrett ISBN: 0393316009 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: December, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.31
Rating: 5
Summary: Andrea Barrett is the John Grisham of Biology
Comment: Just as John Grisham's protagonists are lawyers, the protagonists of Andrea Barrett's Ship Fever are biologists and physicians, most often from the 19th century. Ship Fever is a collection of short stories plus a novella which shares the collection's title. The historical novella Ship Fever is of itself more than worth the price of this book, and the short stories that accompany it are gems to be treasured. Ship Fever is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the terrible tragedy of the Irish during the potato famine, and inadequacies of 19th century medicine in dealing with epidemics aboard crowded and unsanitary ships carry fleeing emmigrants. Many of the characters are historical figures, the research is meticulous, and like all stories in this collection, the reader is totally engaged. I highly recommend this book.
Rating: 5
Summary: Science, humans and story, elegantly blended
Comment: Ship Fever is an extraordinary book. As a scientist, writer, and addicted reader, I have found that any connection with science renders most writers excruciating and/or incomprehensible. Ms. Barrett is a rare exception, able to weave science into her stories with consummate grace, neither turgid nor pedantic. Although not a professional scientist herself, she has a keen understanding of science and of scientists, and of human character in general. Her crystalline prose and thoughtful insight make this book eminently readable and at times, breathtaking.
Rating: 5
Summary: A fascinating blend of science, nature and life
Comment: Andrea Barrett's "Ship Fever and Other stories" is such a rare literary treasure you'd want to take your time tasting and savouring every morsel of delight these vignettes release. Barrett draws upon her expert knowledge of nature, history and the sciences to create a fascinating subtext over which the private lives and heroic struggles of men (and women) of science are interwoven and told. The stories are not all of equal or impeccable quality. "Ship Fever" is the most outstanding, though others like "The Littorol Zone", "Rare Bird" and "The Behaviour of the Hawkweeds" are also truly excellent. Even the mediocre ones like "Soroche" come laden with such a generous dose of human interest you overlook their weaknesses. Barrett may write about scientists, but not as a breed apart. Her characters are multifaceted and always interesting. They live, love and fight just like the rest of us. Through these stories, Barrett expose the hypocrisy and double standards that dog women and scientists in 19th Century society. Sexual politics, the relevance and responsibility of men of science and their contribution to public good are common themes that recur throughout.
In "Ship Fever", Suzanne Rowling is handicapped by her sex but emerges victorious when she overcomes social barriers to nurse the sick at the cost of her own life. Dr Lauchlin Grant discovers true humanity only when he leaves the middle class comfort of his home for Grosse Isle to fight the terrible plague and dies from it, but not before saving Nora Kynd's life. Nora's last act in honour of Lauchlin's memory is one of the most touching moments in "Ship Fever". Contrast these lives with Arthur Adam Rowling's, still writing, reporting and shaping public opinion, seemingly untouched by the death and disease which has devastated his family and reached his doorsteps, or his servants', whose humanity lies dormant till the very end.
Barrett's beautifully judged and precise descriptive prose is strangely evocative, like the lingering fragrance of bouquet from good wine. Reading this book is such a pleasurable experience you don't want it to end. "Ship Fever and Other Stories" is a great literary achievement and truly deserving of the National Book Award. Don't miss it !
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Title: Servants of the Map: Stories by Andrea Barrett ISBN: 0393043487 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: February, 2002 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Voyage of the Narwhal: A Novel by Andrea Barrett ISBN: 0393319504 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: September, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: The FORMS OF WATER : THE FORMS OF WATER by Andrea Barrett ISBN: 0671795228 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: August, 1994 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: MIDDLE KINGDOM by Andrea Barrett ISBN: 0671729616 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: March, 1992 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Waiting (Vintage International) by Ha Jin ISBN: 0375706410 Publisher: Vintage Books Pub. Date: 19 September, 2000 List Price(USD): $13.00 |
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