Book Club: In Stitches

Can I just say I am loving the ThriveAP Book Club?  It has given me an incentive to add some medical and career related reading to my repertoire and I have discovered some excellent reads.  Most of all, I appreciate authors who can look outside themselves and their profession pointing out the humor in everyday life.  With his book In Stitches, Dr. Anthony Youn does just that.

In Stitches tells the story of Tony Youn, a Korean boy painfully aware he is out of place in a small, predominately white midwestern town.  With Coke-bottle glasses and a jaw growing at a faster rate than the rest of his adolescent body, he finds himself chronically girlfriendless.  Tony’s father, an OB/GYN, wants one thing for his son- to become a doctor.  “Doctor never get fired” he repeats over and over throughout Tony’s childhood at one point canceling a family vacation so Tony and his brother can study for the MCAT which for the boys is years away.

Dr. Youn looks back at his childhood with self-deprecating humor recounting how he ultimately became a renowned plastic surgeon.  Tony survives medical school overcoming his nerdiness, finally finding a girlfriend.  Entering medical school a pseudo outcast, he graduates a confident young man setting out on the path to become a successful plastic surgeon.

In Stitches is a heartwarming, comical read for doctors, nurse practitioners and non-medical readers alike.  It inspires readers to become the best version of themselves, approaching life’s sometimes painful trials as growing experiences.  Youn motivates readers to embrace their quirks and be comfortable in their own skin.

What did you think of In Stitches?

Next month’s read is Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness, a New York Times bestseller recounting author Susannah Cahalan’s descent into mental illness.