The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult

Sometimes we find a good book, and other times a good book finds us. “The Book of Two Ways” by Jodi Picoult found me like an arrow heading straight for a bull’s eye. I had heard there was a new Picoult book out. Then my sister-in-law Jen recommended it, and then I even recommended it (sight-unseen, without knowing the plot) to a good friend who used to work at my hospice. Finally, when I started reading it, I discovered the main character is a “death doula” at a hospice helping people transition from life to death. Now I admit, a story about a death doula is not everyone’s cup of team, but for me this was a wonderful read. Dawn Edelstein is on a plane back to Boston, where she lives with her husband and daughter, when the plane crashes, but she survives. After airline officials make sure Dawn is ok, they offer her transportation wherever she wants to go, instead of saying the sane choice of Boston, she impulsively says Egypt. As crazy as this may sound, on the heels of a near death experience, she longs to see Wyatt Armstrong, a colleague she once worked with (and fell in love with) on an archeological dig. Armstrong has spent years researching the ancient “Book of Two Ways,” the first known map of the afterlife. When Dawn shows up back in Egypt, after so many years apart, Wyatt is as confused as she is. Was she meant to be with him from the beginning?  Is he the love of her life instead of her husband?  Is Dawn experiencing something real, or is she just on a metaphysical journey to compare the choices she made versus the roads not taken? I don’t want to give away the details, but the plot is rich in romance, history and mystery. Many of us dream about missed opportunities, but few of us get to take a stab again at what might have been.  To buy this book on Amazon click here.