The Spirit of the Place is a hard book for me to review. While I enjoyed the idea of the story and did enjoy most of the book, I can't say that I loved it nor can I say that it was memorable. Much of the book was wonderfully written and very descriptive but I felt some parts just were missing something. I also felt that the ending was kind of predictable and seemed unfinished to me. I waited so long to receive this book after I won it through Early Reviewers that I wanted to love it but, alas, I did not.

This is an ER book that I was scheduled to receive, which never arrived; hence, I could not write a review. It looks interesting from the posted reviews.

In The Spirit of the Place, Samuel Shem's descriptive prose illustrates the return of Dr. Orville Rose to his hometown following the death of his mother and his experiences following that return.

Other reviewers have provided a good plot summary, so I won't repeat that here. What I will comment on is the nature of the writing: while I liked Shem's earlier works better (particularly Mount Misery), both the humor and character of his writing remains strong. Unfortunately, the plot of The Spirit of the Place isn't as similarly strong, but it's still a pretty good read. It's also a book that I've picked up and put down several times: maybe not strong enough to hold me through the duller parts, but with enough of a hold to keep me coming back to it. ( )

Dr. Orville Rose has been living in EUrope practicing medicine at a European spa and life is pretty good. He likes his work, and he's fallen in love with a beautiful Italian yoga instructor. That's all about to change. "Two Bad things will happen today" she tells him one day as they set off boating on a lake. He scoffs, but soon finds out she was right. The "bad thing" that effects him the most is finding out his mother had died some time ago as he was wandering around Europe. This is the story of his return home, and how he deals with having to stay there for just over a year if he wishes to inherit everything his mother has left him.

So we read the story of how he reacts and deals with what he considers his "punishment" by his mother. The story has both it's comedic and tragic moments, just as life often does. While the story didn't grab my attention and make me want to keep reading straight thru, I did keep going back to it after short diversions to other things to see what would happen next. Settling in to a "small town" type of life after the more "cosmopoltian" style of living in Europe, we watch as Orville fights demons from his past while just wanting to get back to Italy. At the same time he is seeing his boyhood home in ways he had never really seen it before.

We get to watch as both he and those around him react and interact with one another. There are changes for the good and bad, but just who those changes are good or bad for may not necessarily be who you might expect. In their own ways, each character goes thru a change even tho it's Orville whose life we are following most closely.

Being about a doctor and his life, there's some medical jargon and doctoring going on, but none is graphic or over used. Its primary use is to give Orville more chances to interact with and learn about the townspeople. While like all books this one won't be for everyone, if you enjoy reading "life stories" type of books, you should find this enjoyable. ( )

This story of the return of Dr Orville Rose to his small hometown of Columbia, New York after the death of his mother, Selma, is a wonderful blend of tragedy and comedy.

During the year and 13 days that Orvy remains in the town he loathes in order to fulfill the terms of his mother's will and receive his inheritance we meet many a colorful character -- including the deceased Selma, now returned to a youthful beauty, flying about at night and sniping at her son from on high. The characters -- including that of the town of Columbia -- are cleverly drawn and all worth meeting.

Not the most brilliant book I've read this year, but a good solid read and well worth the time. I will recommend to many. ( )