This book was an excellent read with scientific basis. The study had a control group: all the nun's from a particular order, which included women from all walks in life. I was fascinated to find that some nuns with advanced Alzheimer's had no symptoms. I think one of the greatest messages of this book was that attitudes are so influential for the pleasant condition of aging. In other words, be positive, think positive and live positive and your life will be much better.

This was an "enchanting" book but way too long and wordy.

This is a very well written book, with lots of beautiful descriptions of another culture. The story line moves along perfectly and I call it a real page-turner. Around every corner there were suprises that really kept the reader guessing. My book club unanamously loved this book and it was a favorite for almost all of us. I highly reccommend this book. One book club member had one complaint - she didn't like how the ending left her wondering what would happen next. Here is the greatest gift of all - the author wrote a sequel about these characters.