Reader’s Journal #10- Diagnosis Death by Richard Mabry

#10                                    Reader’s Journal                                  10/31/11                                   

Dear Mrs. Zrihen,

            This week I continued reading the book, Diagnosis Death by Richard Mabry. While I read the beginning of the book, I was pretty sure I would finish it; however, towards the middle, it wasn’t so much a mystery anymore. It started including too much about religion and not enough mystery.

            I chose a few quotes from the book to support my reason for abandoning it:

           

“Surely God wouldn’t take that from her after He’d already taken her husband.” “’I’ll pray for you.’” “Only God knows why.” “’God shall show you your path.’” (KINDLE)

These were just few of the MANY statements with the word “God” in it. It is significant to the story because it is basically ALL the author mentions throughout the book. However, I did not stop reading exactly when I saw how much religion was included in this book; I kept reading to give it a fair enough chance and luckily I found this passage:

“The envelope was a cheap, self-sealing one, addressed by hand in block capitals using blue ballpoint. Two different stamps were affixed to provide the proper postage. The blurred postmark gave no indication of the city of origin.

Elena ran her finger under the flap and pulled out a single sheet of paper from a lined tablet.

The message was printed in the same block capitals. At the end, the writer had pressed down hard enough to penetrate the paper. Elena read the message twice, at first unable to understand and then unwilling to believe it.

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID AND YOU’LL PAY.

She dropped the paper onto the table and pressed both hand to her temples.” (KINDLE)

I chose this passage because it was the first and only passage that sparked my interest, other than the synopsis. It is significant to the story because it introduces the climax.

I used many before, during, and after reading strategies throughout the process of reading this book. Before reading, I reviewed what I already knew about this book by reading my reader’s journal #9 and my notes and highlights on my Kindle. I also set a purpose for reading. My purpose for continuing this book was to see if I would enjoy it more, my book a week challenge, and for my reader’s journal. While reading I decided whether or not I should abandon the book by marking the quotes that did not interest me. While reading I also thought about if any literary elements had changed; however, none did. After reading, I thought about the reasons readers abandon books and compared it to why I abandoned the book. Readers usually abandon books because they don’t give it a fair chance. They don’t try to maintain the interest they had in the first place; however, I know I gave it a fair chance because I thought about the reason I was interested in the book, and tried maintaining that interest. The part that interested me was the one passage I included in the beginning of my reader’s journal. I tried so hard to continue reading to find out what this means, but couldn’t because it was mainly focused on religion, that I forgot about my interest. By going over these things, I’m sure that I gave the book a fair enough chance before abandoning it. Also after reading, I thought about all the information that changed (which were some literary elements) and why a good reader would abandon a book to write my readers journal.

I found many literary elements in this book that were the same from when I started reading. The genre is fiction and the subgenre is mystery because it has a suspenseful plot with mysterious conflicts. The main character is Dr. Elena Gardner. She is a round protagonist that is very easily described throughout the book. She is the character that has the main conflicts and who the story is mainly about. Although she is round, she is not dynamic because from what I read, she does not go through any characterization; she remains the same as she was from the beginning of the book and does not change at all. There is one round character that is not really a protagonist, but not a foil character either. Dr. Helen Bennett is explained as “one of the most respected family practitioners in the community” and “a doctor Elena had admired since her days in medical school”. She is mentioned a few times in the book and plays a pretty important roll, but not important enough to be considered a protagonist; she is static. There are no antagonists because no one is technically considered the “bad guy”, but some foil characters are a woman who calls Elena every night at midnight, screaming and crying, Dr. David Merritt, Dr. Amy Gross, Dr. Bruce Matney, Chester Pulliam, Erma Pulliam, and Dr. Cathy Sewell. The setting isn’t specified in the book although they do mention the St. Paul Hospital. Weather conditions vary throughout the book and one social condition is that Dr. Elena Gardner is a widow who has a secret.

The plot structure dragged on. The exposition explains who the main character is, her problems, and her past. It also tells you about the mysterious phone calls she gets at night. The rising action started with Elena getting a call from a doctor named Dr. Helen Bennett offering her a position to work for her; however, it turned out the doctor got a job somewhere else. Also, It tells the readers about a new position Elena received and a few days working at the new hospital she worked at. The climax was when she received the letter that said “I KNOW WHAT YOU DID AND YOU’LL PAY.” I abandoned the book before I could get to the falling action because the book just seemed to drag on about religion and other material not relevant to mysteries.

I wasn’t able to identify any theme or moral. The tone was mysterious because the author tried adding mysterious events. For example, the phone calls Elena receives every night at midnight and the letter that was sent to her. The mood was curious at some points and bored at others (when the book was mainly about God). I know that this book is part of a series, but I haven’t read the other books by this author; therefore, I don’t know his motif, but I believe it is writing medical mysteries. The pattern of organization is climatic order because the author organized the book in order of plot structure, starting with the exposition, and ending with the resolution. The point-of-view is third person limited because the narrator speaks about what he can only see and hear, but knows what one character thinks and feels. The author’s purpose is to entertain readers with a medical mystery; however, he didn’t really do such a great job. The author’s perspective is subjective, or biased because since he chose to write in third person limited, the readers are only able to know what one character, Elena, believes in and feels. One conflict I was able to identify was Man vs. Self because Elena has to try to get over the tragic death of her husband, Mark.

I identified many different types of figurative language while reading this book. “A woman’s voice–a husky alto, like a lounge singer in a smoky room, second-rate club” is a simile, comparing the woman’s voice to a lounge singer. Another simile I identified was, “Helen placed her mug on the table as carefully as an astronaut docking the space shuttle” compares how carefully Helen paced her mug to an astronaut docking a space shuttle. “’We know the wound from Mark’s death is still tender’” is a metaphor because it compares the pain Elena feels inside to a new, physical wound. A hyperbole I found was, “The look on his wife’s face reminded Elena of how she felt what seemed like a million years ago.” It over-exaggerates the amount of years. “After a quiet evening, Elena was soon awakened from her daze with a loud RING!” This is onomatopoeia because it is a sound.

In conclusion, I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone who is not interested in a book about religion. I rate it a 2½ because although I abandoned it, I was still able to find few passages and quotes I enjoyed.

    Sincerely,

Bailey Levy 802