After reading "A Little Life", Hanya Yanagihara's second novel, my favorite book in a look time and a story that totally captivated me, I was ready to devour her debut novel, "The People in the Trees". I didn't come to the story with any knowledge of the real life individual that the core of this books was based upon, only learning more once I finished the story. The book is written in the form of memoirs from Dr. Norton Perina, rationalizing his life, brilliance and ultimate demise (alluded to in the very beginning of the book).