State of Wonder

State of Wonder
By Ann Patchett
Harper, 2011. 353 pgs. Fiction

A potential miracle drug that will allow women to conceive children well past menopause is in development deep in the wilds of the Amazon jungle. Dr. Annick Swenson, a renowned gynecologist working for the Vogel pharmaceutical company has been researching the reproductive habits of a local tribe, but when communication stops between the eccentric Dr. Swenson and Vogel, an affable pharmacologist, Anders Eckman, is sent to the jungle to learn the status of the drug research. Months later Vogel receives a short letter from Dr. Swenson explaining that Eckman has died of a fever. Marina Singh, Eckman’s friend and research partner is asked by both Eckman’s bereaved wife and Vogel’s CEO to discover what has happened. What Marina has told no one is that she and Dr. Swenson have an overlapping past that Marina has tried to forget, and nothing can prepare Marina for what she learns in the sweltering, insect-infested jungles of the Amazon.

Ann Patchett is a master story teller. She deftly handles emotional scenes where science and ethics clash, well-written prose where the jungle itself is so vividly described it acts almost as another character, and fast-paced narrative that includes encounters with anaconda snakes and cannibals! While I don’t think this book would be everyone’s cup of tea, I personally have enjoyed everything I have read by Patchett and State of Wonder is perhaps my favorite.

AJ