A review by orangejenny
My Own Country: A Doctor's Story by Abraham Verghese

4.0

Early in My Own Country, Verghese describes his friend and former colleague Essie as "a natural storyteller...Talking was clearly therapeutic for her. She frequently made little detours to provide background for the main theme she was pursuing. I had no occasion to interrupt her except to relieve myself of the coffee." He could just as well be describing himself and this insightful, detail-oriented book about the years he spent as an infectious disease specialist in the mid to late eighties in eastern Tennessee, treating some of the region's first AIDS patients. It's a wonderful mix of topics: medical and historical aspects of HIV, being an internist, being an immigrant doctor, being a newly married doctor with young children, the natural beauty of Tennesee, the communities of Tennessee. My only criticism is that Verghese can get meandering, and the book ends abruptly. But overall, this is thoughtfully, carefully written, and it's a lovely paean to the southeastern United States. Highly recommended.