February's book suggestion

What great posts! Glad we've all enjoyed it, but in different ways and with different reservations. Helen S's suggestion for an epilogue: perfect in literary terms, and I love the idea, but fear it would have been too bleak for me. I felt sure all along that it was going to have a "happy" ending as opposed to widespread tragedy - she conveys that in quite subtle ways, doesn't she? - so I would have had to hold Patchett to that... It is fairly rare, isn't it, for novels to jump genre at the end in the opposite direction: to have all the signs suggesting a positive resolution and then suddenly end horribly. I can't think of any examples offhand - can anyone help me?

While I'm waiting for that, February's book suggestion is Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. I hasten to add that the recent release of the film has absolutely nothing to do with it - Helen S and I thought it would be an interesting book for us to do some time ago, and it's taken a while to work it into the list. I have a spare copy; if anyone wants to borrow it, just let me know.