The Magic and the Healing

Rating:
Summary: A fantasy novel with a surprisingly human touch.
Review: The beauty of "The Magic and the Healing" is in how author Nick O'Donohoe writes beyond his gimmick: that mythological creatures sometimes need medical care, a concept that seems so self-evident you wonder that it hasn't been written about before.

But protagonist B.J., a veterinary student, has medical problems of her own, which she hides from the other main characters, and that's the brilliance of O'Donohoe's work. By keeping B.J.'s difficulties private, the reader is granted a view into her introspection, rather than a series of lectures by others as to how she should cope. When B.J. finds herself in a new world that challenges everything she thought she knew about veterinary medicine -- after all, none of her patients have ever been able to talk back before -- she has no choice but to heal herself so that she can keep from hurting others. And the process is beautiful.

Rating:
Summary: A fantasy novel with a surprisingly human touch.
Review: The beauty of "The Magic and the Healing" is in how author Nick O'Donohoe writes beyond his gimmick: that mythological creatures sometimes need medical care, a concept that seems so self-evident you wonder that it hasn't been written about before.

But protagonist B.J., a veterinary student, has medical problems of her own, which she hides from the other main characters, and that's the brilliance of O'Donohoe's work. By keeping B.J.'s difficulties private, the reader is granted a view into her introspection, rather than a series of lectures by others as to how she should cope. When B.J. finds herself in a new world that challenges everything she thought she knew about veterinary medicine -- after all, none of her patients have ever been able to talk back before -- she has no choice but to heal herself so that she can keep from hurting others. And the process is beautiful.

Rating:
Summary: A touching story
Review: The Magic and the Healing is a truly touching story that lets you see to the heart of the main character without maiking it too boring or too much of a one-track story. Nick portrays BJ with a compassion rarely seen in other authors work.

Rating:
Summary: A read-it-so-much-that-it-fell-apart favorite
Review: When I first read this book, I was in the sixth grade and had borrowed a friend's copy. I immediately bought my own, and right now, almost 10 years later, it still has a place of honor on my shelf. The binding is cracked, the pages are dog-eared, the cover, sadly, is bent -- as a young girl, I didn't realize that not all books stayed in print. It is truly an adventure that I willingly read again and again... and every once in awhile, I type "The Book of Strangeways" into my library's computer. Just to see if anything shows up. :)

Rating:
Summary: A read-it-so-much-that-it-fell-apart favorite
Review: When I first read this book, I was in the sixth grade and had borrowed a friend's copy. I immediately bought my own, and right now, almost 10 years later, it still has a place of honor on my shelf. The binding is cracked, the pages are dog-eared, the cover, sadly, is bent -- as a young girl, I didn't realize that not all books stayed in print. It is truly an adventure that I willingly read again and again... and every once in awhile, I type "The Book of Strangeways" into my library's computer. Just to see if anything shows up. :)