Comments (95)

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Mar 19, 2024
I really enjoy Ann Patchett's writing.This was interesting how she wove this story into quite a thriller in the heart of the Amazon. She has wonderful character development.
Mar 18, 2024Gracie28209 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
For me, the main story is about Dr. Margaret Singh who travels to the jungles of Brazil to find out how her colleague died. She finds him in a remote village and brings him home to his family. It's a good read!
Mar 07, 2024sharon711 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
This is a story about big pharma - how new drugs are developed, who finances the work, and who does the work. And of course besides the obvious health benefits (or lack of which) of the work, it is about what products will make the most…
Dec 15, 2023writermala rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I am an Ann Patchett fan and looked forward to reading this book. The story line was interesting. A scientist, Marina Singh, is sent to the Amazon jungle following the death of a colleague. She is supposed to investigate but ends up in a…
Oct 25, 2022ekhdong rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Too fantastical a conclusion. Well written. Okay paced. Swenson more interesting than Singh.
Oct 17, 2022missywarner rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
science meets indiana jones. Fun read.
Apr 29, 2022
Judy Andrews recommends
May 27, 2021Cidherman rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I love adventure stories, and am particularly partial to those that feature the Amazon Jungle and River. By all rights I should have loved this story. It wasn't until near the very end, I began to actually enjoy STATE OF WONDER. For…
Jan 14, 2021LPL_SarahM rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I am such a fan of Ann Patchett's writing. Every book I've read of hers has immediately transported me to the world of the characters. This one was another gorgeous read. Set mostly in the jungle of the Amazon, I was enthralled from…
Dec 11, 2020joe_strnad rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Amazing - five stars! Ann Patchett kicks butt! What else can I say? Such a fun read - she hooks you in quick - Marina must travel to Brazil to discover the fate of her friend and coworker. Once there she's thrown into developing-world…
Dec 04, 2020
Patchett has written an entertaining romp through the Amazon where a pharmaceutical company is researching a fertility drug. Lakashi women do not ever achieve menopause, even when they reach their 70’s, and continue to have children to the…
Oct 17, 2020kjjranch rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I really enjoyed the story and how it unfolded a little at a time, just as the jungle revealed itself. I felt like I was there with them.
Jul 20, 2019EljayJohnson rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
It probably would have gotten five stars except for some disappointment at the ending. I've read two other Patchett novels - Bel Canto and The Magician's Assistant - and I loved Bel and didn't like Magician's. So, this was the tiebreaker…
Jul 05, 2019JessicaGma rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I do enjoy reads about mad scientists and this was an interesting one. Maria Swensen is perhaps not so much mad as driven to the point of excluding everything else. Marina Singh is a pale character in comparison, sort of dull and only…
Aug 06, 2018wyenotgo rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
OK, I realize I'm completely out of step with almost everyone who has praised this book. I beg to differ; call be an uptight, moralistic snob if you will, but I found both the premise and several of the prime characters objectionable. And…
Mar 24, 2017JCLMelodyMK rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This book is set mainly deep in the Amazon jungle. Scientists are studying a native village in Brazil. One of the scientists, Dr. Anneck Swen-son, recently arriving at the village goes missing and then said to be dead. Dr. Marina Singh is…
jr3083
Mar 21, 2017jr3083 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
See my review at: https://residentjudge.wordpress.com/2017/03/21/state-of-wonder-by-ann-patchett/
Jan 29, 2017spiderfelt_0 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Without resorting to narrative tricks, or creating a chronology salad, Patchett has mastered the art of telling a straight story well. With no experience academia, I was struck by the level of research that must have gone into this book.…
Nov 14, 2016xiaojunbpl12 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
All are predictable (I was like Karen, did not believe her husband died...) and satisfactory, still full of "small" wonders (*), except for the reunion of Marina and Anders which is sublime. A semi-sci-fi, but I wasn't awed as much as…
Oct 29, 2016dano62 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
This story really made me think, it is filled with profound allegory. The author's writing style describes well and is down to earth, transitioning to different scenes at times-I might like to try her audiobooks. There is a sense of…
Sep 21, 2016santiano9 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Excellent story, well written. Did not want it to end. Highly recommend for a good read.
May 10, 2015Chapel_Hill_MollyL rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Ann Patchett's amazing skills as a writer are on display beautifully in State of Wonder. She can evoke place, mood, and character in a way few other contemporary writers can match. Her plotting is probably her greatest weakness, and the…
Feb 09, 2015africanannie rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is my first Ann Patchett book. It took me about 1/3 of the book to get into it, but once I did, I couldn't put it down! I loved her characters and she is a master of dialogue, as well as plot. I've now reserved all her books and can't…
Jan 19, 2015CPL_Laura rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
After Marina’s colleague dies in the Amazon jungle, her employer sends the research scientist there to complete the mission he could not: to locate and bring back her former mentor, who has gone missing while researching a controversial…
Dec 11, 2014DPLheather rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Beautiful literature and deep characterization. Good for those who like Kingsolver. But you'll never want to visit the Amazon after you read the episode with the anaconda....