Books...

"The Card Turner" by Louis Sachar Delacorte Press 336 pages $17.99 It's an unusual plot line. A teen-aged boy has an uncle who is blind from diabetes, very wealthy and an ardent bridge player. When the kid is hired for the summer to go with his uncle to the bridge club, look at his hand and then, away from the table, repeat the cards to his uncle (who has a prodigious memory) the kid's mother is overjoyed! She wants to be sure they are included in the Will. Written through the kid's eyes, the book has humor. As the kid is leaving for his first day of work with the uncle, his mother fixes him with a stern look and says, "Don't screw this up.' "Making Rounds With Oscar" by David Dosa, MD Hyperion 225 pages $23.99 Oscar is a cat who lives in a hospice specifically for Alzheimer's patients. When a patient is near death, Oscar senses it. He comes into the room, jumps up on the bed and stays with that patient until the undertaker comes. It's a very strange story ... Dosa is a doubter and talks to former patient's families, studies Oscar and finally accepts the fact that Oscar Knows. If I am ever (God forbid) in a hospital and a cat comes in and jumps up beside me, I am going to have the quickest recovery time in all of medical history.