State of Wonder / Ann Patchett / 353 pages

Wow! What a story. I had to stay up until 2:30 am to finish it. Marina Singh, a pharmacist who works in a lab for a drug company, embarks on a mission to the rainforest of the Amazon to discover what happened to her colleague and determine the progress made by one of her former med school professors, the formidable Dr. Swenson, on a new drug that will keep women fertile into their 70's. The plot is definitely character driven and extremely thought-provoking. If a book was ever written for book discussion groups...this is the one! Highly recommended.