I (heart) books

I am reading a wonderful book that I had to share on here. Let me explain.....those of you who know me well know that I am always reading at least one book that's not for school. I love reading, and always have. Almost nothing makes me happier than a day at Borders or Barnes & Noble. In the past few years, I've read a lot of medical books, both textbooks and other non-fiction. The Anatomy of Hope is one of my favorites. I am currently reading a book by a pediatric neurosurgeon who is at Hopkins. Perhaps you've heard of him. Ben Carson. I'd always seen his book on the shelf, picked it up, and put it back down for some reason. My friend David is a pediatric oncologist at Hopkins, and one day he mentioned Ben Carson, and it jogged my memory. So last week, I was at B&N, and Carson's book Gifted Hands was on the table, and it was only $5. He has a new one out, but this is his first book. It tells his story, of how he grew up poor, in inner-city Detroit, and through nothing but hard work and the standards set upon him by his mother, he became the director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins at the age of 33. I am only on page 88, but I have nothing but respect and awe for him already. He writes about how easy it is to make excuses, to blame failures on "the system", or other things - he writes about how he could have blamed others for his circumstances, but instead, he chose a different path. He wasn't given anything - he struggled, it was not an easy path by any means, and he had his share of trouble (who doesn't?) -  and it's really inspiring to read how he made his decisions and the drive he has within him.  

Other books I am reading now: Hospital by Julie Salamon, which details a year at Maimonides Medical Center in NY; Happiness in a Storm: Facing Illness and Embracing Life as a Healthy Survivor by Wendy Schlessel Harpham, and of course, the books I have to read for Elle magazine. (For those of you who don't know, I was picked as one of the readers who reviews books each month for the magazine, and I'm reviewing for the October issue - hey, I get free books!)

High Point: finding my Dunkin Donuts gift card, not tripping up the subway steps

Low Point: cutting my toe open, malfunctioning subway car doors