Cutting for Stone

I finished Cutting for Stone, and I'm not sure what to think of it. Back in college, I read Verghese's book, My Own Country: A Doctor's Story, and found it interesting, so back in  2009, when Cutting for Stone was released to positive reviews, I decided to read it, but with one thing and another didn't open the book until this winter. (Reading and knitting is all winter is good for.)

Since Verghese is a medical doctor, it's not surprising that his descriptions of illness, surgery, and even the doctor-patient relationship are rich and detailed. (So detailed that one user on Goodreads suggested the squeamish should skip passages.) Confession: I did skip three pages, but they were not about medical procedures but about puppies.

The invocation of Ethiopian culture, even from the perspective of the sheltered Missing Hospital, was interesting to me, as was the backdrop of Ethiopian politics and the Eritrean resistance. My favorite characters, and I thought the characters most vividly drawn, were Hema and Ghosh.  More than once during the novel, I couldn't keep from tearing up.

For the most part then, I thought this was a great novel. At the same time, I felt a little bit like the king in Amadeus who reacts to Mozart's opera premier with the observation, "There were too many notes." The vividness Verghese brought to descriptions of the body, however, were not applied to the heart. Marion, the narrator, Shiva, his twin, and Gerte, their almost-sister, were not as fully drawn as I would like, especially in comparison to the sometimes plodding exposition. The ending didn't completely satisfy me, though I'm not sure what I would have wanted instead.

Despite the criticisms, I think this is a book worth reading, and I recommend it.

On another note - what is it with Indian authors and twins? I don't want to say what happened in Cutting for Stone, but it reminded me of another novel of twins, The God of Small Things, the ending of which disturbs me to this day.

Quotation of the Day

"Every mile is two in winter,"

~ George Herbert

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

When George and I were in Boston we saw the New England Holocaust Memorial which is very breathtaking, but also very sad. These four columns, along with two not pictured, represent the six Nazi concentration camps (or the six candles in the menorah). At the bottom of each column, smoke rises from charred embers. Viewing the memorial, it's hard not to imagine the horror of the death camps and the unbelievable suffering that happened there.



Today, the anniversary of the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp's liberation, has been designated a Holocaust Remembrance Day by the United Nations General Assembly.

Little Zoe

All my Ardmore relatives have dogs. In fact, Lizzie has two! I love them all, but Zoe and I am particularly bonded. I was in Ardmore the week Lizzie brought Zoe home, and whenever I am in Ardmore, she stays over at grandmas and sleeps with me. My mother just sent me this picture of Zoe and me (taken in December). Zoe gives the best doggie kisses!

Quotation of the Day

"Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army."

~Edward Everett

Paper Pot

This is the cutest Kleenex dispenser made! Lizzie gave it to me as a Christmas gift. I want one in the other available colors now!

The "paper pot" is sold by Uncommon Goods, an online/mail order company that offers creative, interesting, funky, and often handmade items. They have a laudable mission statement:

At UncommonGoods, we want to change the way business is conducted by making sustainability a part of every decision we make. Each month, employees from all areas of our company gather to discuss how we can make UncommonGoods more environmentally friendly, socially responsible and an ever-more rewarding place to work.

They feature items with recycled content, and their website says that no animals were harmed in the production processes of the products they sell. (The latter statement is not one I can verify; I seem to remember some items being non-vegan.)

Additionally, Uncommon Goods was a founding member of B Corporation. B Corporations are relatively new, but as far as I can tell, they are awesome. To become a B Corporation, organizations must meet certain environmental and social standards and adhere to higher accountability and transparency standards than traditional organizations. Social and environmental responsibility must be included in the mission statement and "in the DNA" of the company. (The list of B Corporations is here.)

What I am telling you, then, is that not only can you buy this paper pot without feeling guilty, you should buy this paper pot not just because it is awesomely cool but also because you'll be giving your money to a great company.

Walter Says...

This snow is BS!