There are many reasons to dislike this one. Unlikeable characters. Implausible plot. Uncomfortable setting. 
 And yet I didn't. I liked the rough and obscenely practical voice of Dr. Swenson, Marina's "stranger in a strange land" point of view, the oppressive heat of the Amazon, the excitement of a possible medical miracle... 
 This was by far not a perfect book. But I think maybe it was the serendipity of "right book, right time". I miss vacations and the thrill of discovering something unknown-to-me that hits me in the face like a sudden storm. 
 (view spoiler)[And I know it was totally fabricated, but the end made me happy. And though Ann Patchett strung a lot of plot threads that she could have tied together nicely, she chose not to use most of them and leave the ending up to the reader, which I can appreciate. (hide spoiler)] 
 Favorite Quotes 
 Hope is like walking around with a fishhook in your mouth and somebody just keeps pulling it and pulling it. 
 Such is your bravery. Such is my good fortune. 
 She mad the sounds of a person who was trying to wrestle an enormous sorrow to the ground. 
 Every drop of rain hit the ground with such force it bounced back up again, giving the earth the appearance of something boiling. 
 Gentlemen, close your books and listen. We have nothing less than the world to consider.