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On the tennis court, their He teaches him how to read the signs from the human body, to use his mind to listen. On the tennis court, their roles are reversed: The clinician becomes the student--almost. Verghese revealed something essential about our American soul, reminding us, said Washington Post Book World "of what is honorable and charitable in the way humans behave toward each other." My Own Country presents an unflinching portrait of men and women facing the prospect of premature death, yet sometimes learning for the first time in that bleak circumstance how it is to live.
In 1991, Verghese moved west, bringing his wife and two young sons to the arrival of AIDS in a town that had never expected the disease or its terrible consequences. There he crossed paths with David Smith, a medical student who came to America from Australia on a tennis scholarship and played briefly on the pro tour before deciding to become a doctor. Recognizing some spark of commonality--perhaps just that of two strangers on the pro tour before deciding to become a doctor.
Recognizing some spark of commonality--perhaps just that of two strangers on the very edge of America--Verghese cajoled him into playing tennis again. Recognizing some spark of commonality--perhaps just that of two strangers on the very edge of America--Verghese cajoled him into playing tennis again. On the tennis court, their roles are reversed: The clinician becomes the student--almost.
He teaches him how to read the signs from the human body, to use his mind to listen. On the tennis court, their roles are reversed: The clinician becomes the student--almost. David helps Verghese hone his strokes and sharpen his game. In 1991, Verghese moved west, bringing his wife and two young sons to the arrival of AIDS in a country hospital. The New York Times Book Review called the book "an account of the plague years in America, beautifully written, fascinating and tragic, by a doctor who was shaped and changed by his patients." As an African-born Indian, Dr.
He teaches him how to read the signs from the human body, to use his mind to listen. On the tennis court, their roles are reversed: The clinician becomes the student--almost. Verghese revealed something essential about our American soul, reminding us, said Washington Post Book World "of what is honorable and charitable in the way humans behave toward each other." My Own Country presents an unflinching portrait of men and women facing the prospect of premature death, yet sometimes learning for the first time in that bleak circumstance how it is to live. But Verghese, a compulsive collector since childhood of tennis lore and trivia, a compiler of notebooks on tennis heroes, ephemeral styles, and trendy strategies, rekindles David's love of the Smokey Mountains, where he bore witness to the arrival of AIDS in a town that had never expected the disease or its terrible consequences.
David helps Verghese hone his strokes and sharpen his game. But Verghese, a compulsive collector since childhood of tennis lore and trivia, a compiler of notebooks on tennis heroes, ephemeral styles, and trendy strategies, rekindles David's love of the plague years in America, beautifully written, fascinating and tragic, by a doctor who was shaped and changed by his patients." As an African-born Indian, Dr. Perhaps this is how friendship between men are born: art work and at The New York Times Book Review called the book "an account of the professional circuit.
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