From the cover:
Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon. Orphaned by their mother's death, and the father's disappearance, bound together by a preternatural connection and shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution.
My thoughts:
At over 650 pages, the book was longer than I usually like to read and as a physician, Mr. Verghese delves into the intricacies of surgery in the book which can sometimes be a little gory. But his descriptions of Ethiopia (one of the oldest countries in the world) and the lives of people living there during perilous times takes the reader into the action and with much empathy. On the Ethiopia web site, there are warnings against civil unrest for those visiting the country even today. Born in Addis Ababa to Indian parents, I'm sure the author drew from personal experiences in his novel. It is definitely a thought provoking book.
