Cutting for Stone

Week 2

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

I really didn't think I was going to finish all 541 pages of this book in time to post this week, but HOORAY, 'cause I just made it through! At several points throughout I almost called it quits because of the graphic nature of some of the events, but I loved the writing so much and the story was so intriguing that I persevered.

The book is about the life of twins, Marion and Shiva Stone (but mostly Marion, because he is the main narrator of the novel). They were born in an Ethiopian Mission hospital, their birth a product of a mysterious (it takes all 500 pages of the book to get the whole story) affair between a reclusive British surgeon and a beautiful Indian nun/nurse. Along with the entire lives of the twins, you also get to read/discover the back story of their parents, and also the history of some of the other characters in the book, like the boy's adoptive parents Ghosh and Hema. In my opinion, Verghese weaves the complicated web of a tale into a beautiful tapestry.

Both Marion and Shiva follow in their biological (and adoptive parent's) footsteps by entering into the medical profession, and the book follows Marion into a forced exile from Ethiopia to America, the strange land of the Bronx, NY to be exact. Where later in life he is unexpectedly reunited with the father he never knew, and the woman that tore he and his twin brother apart. Both chance meetings will change the course of he and his estranged brothers' lives forever, bringing them together again, and entwining them forever.

Oooo, I get chills just typing about it! Seriously, this is one intense story!

For those of you with weak stomaches, this might not be the book for you. The author, Abraham Verghese is Professor and Senior Associate Chair for the Theory and Practice of Medicine at Stanford University, and he was also the founding director of the Center for Medical Humanities and Ethics at the University of Texas Health Science Center. With all that under his belt, you can imagine that the medical jargon and detailed description of what is going on in the operation tables within the pages of his novel are the real deal, and he doesn't mince words, or leave anything up to your imagination. I always thought I could never be a doctor because I wasn't smart enough, now I know that even if I had the brains, my gag reflex never could have handled it. I was, however, perfectly ok with reading about it :) I just didn't read and eat at the same time. And I actually found seeing things through the eyes of a (albeit fictional) surgeon fascinating. If you are one of those people who likes to watch others being cut up on those cable medical shows...then this is a must-read for YOU.

I feel I should also add there was some graphic sexual content as well, I would give this book an R rating. But if you're interested in reading in, and want something else to gauge it by, I would say the things in the book Kite Runner disturbed me more (I choose Kite Runner as a point of reference because it is an incredibly popular novel that many people, who I guess I underestimated, surprised me by reading...and liking).

If you end up reading it, or have already read it, let me know what you thought!

PS: I am VERY excited about next week's book!