Nonfiction
Released September 10, 2013
558 Pages
Bottom Line: Read it.
Affiliate Link: Buy from Amazon
Source: Library (Publisher: Crown)
Headline
Part portrait of a hospital trying to survive in the wake of disaster and part exploration of end-of-life care and euthanasia in the U.S., Five Days at Memorial reads like a thriller and is the first nonfiction book I’ve included on my Page Turners list.
Plot Summary
An investigative report into what happened during and immediately after Hurricane Katrina at New Orleans’ Memorial Medical Center…including allegations that doctors intentionally sped up death for some of the hospital’s sickest patients that they thought wouldn’t survive an evacuation.
Why I Read It
This was the book that got the most votes from my Nonfiction November Reading Options post…plus, it’s been on my TBR for a couple years now and I felt like the last person on earth who hadn’t read it.
Major Themes
End-of-life care, euthanasia, prioritization of medical care, disaster preparedness, aftermath of a disaster
What I Liked
- I think it’s rare for nonfiction to feel like a fast-paced page turner, but this one did. Particularly in Part 1, which focused on the play-by-play of what happened in the hospital during and immediately following Hurricane Katrina.
- Comparing Five Days at Memorial to The Martian might seem odd. But, I got the same frantic feeling as I did while reading The Martian; of putting out a fire just to have a new one crop up…and being on the edge of my seat wondering whether they’ll survive each new setback.
- This book is about so much more than just the events at Memorial. It’s about end-of-life medical decisions, euthanasia, medical ethics, the prioritization of care and evacuation in a disaster, what happens to society when conventional standards break down in the face of disaster (i.e. sometimes a Lord of the Flies environment), bureaucratic incompetence, poor planning, lack of perspective and the wrath of the elements. It’s about how all this conspired to create a horrific situation requiring choices no human should ever have to make.
Memorial wasn’t so much a hospital anymore but a shelter that was running out of supplies and needed to be emptied.
- Fink wrote the book in a way that, when I was in the heat of the moment (i.e. Part 1), I had sympathy for both sides and could see both sides’ logic. But, in hindsight (i.e. Part 2, which covered the subsequent investigation), the doctors’ actions seemed callous and wrong. This is probably similar to how the real-life situation felt to many who were involved or following it on the news and I appreciated Fink’s ability to make me feel the complexity of the real-life situation.
- This book is a debate starter. The lack of a clear right answer to what happened at Memorial would make for some fantastic book club conversation.
What I Didn’t Like
- It was overly long and I could’ve done without a few specific tangents in Part 2 (historical background on euthanasia and the entire Epilogue except what happened at NYU hospital during Hurricane Sandy).
A Defining Quote
Pou would later say that the goal in a disaster must be to do “the greatest good for the greatest number of people,” […]. But what does the “greatest good” mean when it comes to medicine? Is it the number of lives saved? Years of life saved? Best “quality” years of life saved? Or something else?
Good for People Who Like…
Investigative journalism, medical nonfiction, disaster scenarios, emotional gut wrenchers, debate starters
Other Books You May Like
Because of its fast paced, how-will-we-survive-what’s-thrown-at-us-next feel:
The Martian by Andy Weir
Because of its focus on how society responds to disaster:
One Second After by William R. Forstchen
So glad this was a winner for you, too! I initially missed the word “except” in your sentence about skipping the epilogue and what happened at NYU hospital during Hurricane Sandy and was shocked… guess I need to finish my coffee before I start commenting/reading posts 😉 That alone would have been a particularly effective epilogue.
Haha! Yeah – that would’ve been odd. Kind of amazing that essentially the same thing happened with NYU…that they didn’t learn from Katrina.
Very compelling review! This book sounds great but not like the kind of book I’d ever be in the “mood” to read (just because of the subject matter) even though I’d surely like it and benefit from reading it. At least it’s on my radar now …
It’s definitely not light or fun, but I was completely engrossed and did enjoy it.
I have a feeling I’ll like this book a lot.
I hope you get to it!
Five Days at Memorial is a book I’ve looked at a few times over the years. Your review has me more interested than before, but the length for a nonfiction puts me off a bit. Thanks for sharing more about it. I’m glad you liked it!
I was definitely nervous about the length, but the first part flew by. The second part dragged a bit more, but I skimmed some of the parts that dragged for me. Still totally worth it overall.
I’m so glad you found this one a Page Turner!! I never read nonfiction at night but this one had me up on the couch flying through it. It left me thinking about so many things – and agreed would be a great book club book.
YES! I was flying through the first half!
Great review, Sarah! I’ve had this on my TBR list for a while now. I think it’s something that I might read this winter on a storm day!
Haha – or not read on a storm day! Might put the fear of God in you! But, I do hope you read it.
This book has been on my TBR forever. I love your review and I will definitely move it up the list. Glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you and hope you get to it!
Good review, Sarah! I actually have had this e-book on my kindle for over a year or more, and never got to it. Not sure why, because I do love the occasional nonfiction book.
I like that you said it was a page-turner. We were living in the Hudson Valley region during Hurricane Sandy and life was…interesting… then. Some of the worst days of my life, but no structural damage. But loss of power and use of oven, and no generator because they were all sold out, well let’s just say I bundled all the dogs under the blankets at my feet, for their benefit and mine, like the expression “a 3 dog night”.
Oh gosh – you are intimately familiar with living through a hurricane then. I feel terrible for you! I was in NYC during Sandy, but our building was lucky enough not to experience any flooding or power outages.
I have this one on my Kindle, but didn’t include it in the books I’m trying to read in November, but now I’m thinking maybe I’ll switch something out. Of course, I haven’t even finished one book yet so not sure how many I’ll actually get to. Of course, what’s a TBR list for?!
This one is a bit harrowing…and long. I wonder if it’s the right thing for you at the moment. But I’d definitely recommend it at some point!
I found this one at the library and could read the ebook–so it’s on my to-read list. Right up my alley!
Yay! Hope it works for you…it’s eye opening and harrowing.
Great review! I’m glad this was able to live up to the hype for you 🙂
Ok, you’ve sold me on this one! The last narrative nonfiction I read was like a thriller to me – The Poisoner’s Handbook. I imagine this one will be as well. Plus I need a really, really good book to fall into – I haven’t felt like reading anything lately!
I’ll have to check out Poisoner’s Handbook!