The Law of Similars

Chris Bohjalian is a truly amazing storyteller. Once again, he has created a book of wonderfully quirky characters, lovingly (and with humor) portraying life in his adopted home of Vermont. In this book, the story puts in reader in the position of judging a situation in which alternative medicine goes head-to-head with modern medicine, leading to legal repurcussion. Add in a conflicted love interest, and you have this thought-provoking novel.

Leland Fowler is an attorney trying to raise a small daughter after his wife dies in a tragic car accident. He discovers he has this cold of sorts, sore throat, headachy, flu type symptoms, that he has had virtually since the death of his wife. He tries all kinds of remedies and seems to be forever sucking on throat lozenges and cough drops. After his doctor is unable to help, Leland discovers Clarissa Lake, a homeopath. Though he has never tried such a thing and doesn't have any knowledge of how it works, he visits Clarissa in a last ditch effort to just feel better. At this point the story becomes a love story and a legal thriller, as one of Clarissa Lake's patients dies after allegedly taking her advice. Clarissa and Leland are thrust into a world of sudden mistrust and tragedy. It is a true test of love and patience, honor and values, for Clarissa and Leland, and Chris Bohjalian does an excellent job of providing us with an intense and deeply moving story. Don't miss this one.

The Law of Similars by Chris Bohjalian was one of the best books I have ever read. It is about a lawyer who has a four year old daughter and whose wife passed away a few years before. When he gets a bad cold that won't go away, he decides to go to the health food store to get some Echinacea. There, he meets a woman who recommends a homeopath that she thinks could help him. The homeopath, whose name was Carissa Lake, also got another patient that week. The other patient was a man named Richard Emmons, who didn't want to take all of the drugs that he had to for his asthma. Carissa prescribed a drug called Rhus tox, which was made of poison ivy. Richard decides that his other asthmatic drugs are acting as an antidote for it, and stops taking them. This eventually puts him into a coma, and his wife, Jennifer, tries to hold a law suit against Carissa. The lawyer, Leland Rhodes, who has fallen in love with Carissa, tries to help her with the case, and breaks certain laws to do this. I loved this book because it was a believable drama that was very relevant. Not only was the plot believable, but the characters in it were as lifelike as anyone that I know. The chain of events in the book keep you in suspense, and it is hard to put the book down sometimes. Chris Bohjalian also wrote other books, such as Midwives, which are very similar to this book. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys law or anyone who is interested in homeopathic remedies. Also, I would recommend this book to anyone who is eleven or older.

As the wife of a holistic physician, I was immediately drawn to Bohjalian's newest book, The Law of Similars. Bohjalian approaches this somewhat controversial subject in an informative and enlighting manner. The theory of like curing like is a "scary" approach to medicine, and Bohjalian teaches the reader the concept in a very captivating way.This is a novel which captivates and educates the reader. There is so much information to absorb, that one will stay up many nights engrossed in the healing process of the hero. One will also question any previous medical advice they have received and possibly even question its effectiveness.The Law of Similars is a highly recommended novel in the age of HMO and dictated medical care. It will enlighten the reader, and hopefully drive him to take charge of his own medical well being!

Once again Bohjalian has captured life in small town Vermont, with vivid settings and believeable characters. As in Midwives, the story involves generally upstanding people in unexpected predicaments of moral ambiguity. This time it's a lawyer, a grieving young widower who has his first romance since his wife's death. But his infatuation with the woman leads him to do something illegal on her behalf. Then his guilt haunts him like a poison -- a situation made more complicated by the fact that he is deliberately injesting tiny doses of arsenic in order to cure a relentless cold. And a coldness in his heart. He succeeds, but not without pain, and self-discovery that includes taking himself off the workaholic pedastal he and everyone around him has built. As in Midwives, there is a sad kind of truth to the characters' growth. But this book is a more compelling read, because in Midwives a jury decides the outcome, and in The Law of Similars no one can save the central character but himself.