Truth and Beauty by Ann Patchett

This is a book for real bibliophiles like myself. Ann Patchett, author of (among other things) Bel Canto, tells of the friendship between herself and Lucy Grealy, author of Autobiography of a Face. I was surprised at the depth of the passion, mental illness, and obsession that inhabited the relationship between these women. I was lulled into a bit of depression by some of the interactions. And I swalled the book in just one or two night gulps. Hard to put down. I was reminded of the distress that so many artists suffer from; I always think of artists as happy because they are doing what they are passionate about. This book reminded me that often their passions entrap them rather than freeing them.