Books Set in the United States: Confederate South

Judah P. Benjamin: The Jewish Confederate, by Eli N. Evans (1988)

Judah P. Benjamin had been a U.S. Senator for the State of Louisiana prior to the American Civil War.  He was the first acknowledge Jew in the U.S. Senate.  After the formation of the Confederate States, Benjamin became a cabinet member of Jefferson Davis's presidency, serving first as Attorney General, then Secretary of War and finally as Secretary of State.

Benjamin married a Catholic creole from New Orleans and made his home in Louisiana.  The marriage was not a happy one.  His wife left him for Europe and most of their married live was spent on separate continents.

Evans brings to live Judah Benjamin, who was called the "brains behind the Confederacy," but has been largely left to obscurity in American history.  This book also bring insight into the American Civil war from both the Union and the Confederacy.  It was a fascinating book, that I found hard to put down.

Read:  April 14, 2012

Books Set in the United States: Seattle, Washington

Oxygen: A Novel, by Carol Cassella (2008)

Dr. Marie Heaton was an anesthesiologist at Lutheran Hospital in Seattle.  During what should have been a routine surgery on an 8 year-old girl, something goes wrong and the child dies.  Everything points to an error on the part of Dr. Heaton.  An autopsy shows that the child had Turner's syndrome, which caused a heart condition that Dr. Heaton should have known about.  (Why the child's other doctors were unaware of the condition is not explained.)

Soon after the child's death, the child's mother files a lawsuit for wrongful death.  Initially, Dr. Heaton and the Hospital are joined.  Then the hospital throws the good doctor under the bus.  Feeling guilty and heartbroken, Dr. Heaton finds herself back in a romantic relationship with her former lover and anesthesiologist colleague.  She is advised to take some leave, where she visits her sister in Texas who is struggling with her own difficulties.

After criminal charges are filed against her, Dr. Heaton returns to Seattle.  She learns that the hospital believes that she has been using drugs that are meant for her practice.  Dr. Heaton must track down the real culprit to clear her name.

This book is not my standard reading fare, but was one suggested for my reading group.  It was a fast read and held my attention.  I was not enamored by the title, however.

Read: April 6, 2012