Memoir | Book Chatter

In Stitches
By Anthony Youn
(Gallery, Hardcover, 9781451608441, May 2011, 288pp.)

The Short of It:

Funny, entertaining and even touching at times, In Stitches is proof that you can still have a sense of humor while completing medical school.

The Rest of It:

Memoirs are not my thing, but I had aspirations when I was young and yes, those aspirations had to do with me becoming a doctor. Anyone who knows me in real life knows how obsessed I am with the medical field. I mean, when you have some strange, undiagnosed illness that everyone calls “Lupus” you tend to do a little reasearch on your own.

That said, I was fascinated with this book. Anthony, I’ll call him Tony, starts the book off with his very strict, Asian upbringing. I had close friends with parents like his and yes…they both became doctors (in case you were wondering). It’s obvious that Tony’s family is a very loving, caring family but his parents are very clear on what they want for their son and what they want is for him to be a doctor. Not only a doctor, but a surgeon because as his dad tells him, “surgeons make more dallah. ”

Tony’s adolescence is wrought with angst. He’s not a bad-looking guy, but he’s a little geeky and awkward around the girls. Much of the book is him lusting over pretty girls. This was my least favorite part of the book. Unfortunately, the lusting period carries over to college where there is more awkwardness and near-misses with girls. BUT, Tony’s ability to make fun of himself is admirable. Not everyone can do that and his willingness to do it, is what kept me reading.

Once he got to his rotations at the hospital I was hooked. Nurses with attitude, patients with hang-ups, and beeper humor. Lots of beeper humor. It’s been so long since I’ve even seen a beeper, that I completely forgot that they contained actual messages. His rotations and the process he went through to get his residency were my favorites parts of the book. It seemed as if he “came into his own” and really figured out who he was. He became the “Tony” that he always wanted to be, and I was glad for him.

As a writer, Tony is pretty funny. I had no trouble zipping through the pages and I really feel as if I got to know him. His writing is engaging and he has an open, honest way of speaking. I really enjoyed it.

If you’d like a chance to win a copy, and you have a Facebook account, check out the details below.

Source: Review and giveaway copy provided by the publisher.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION

This giveaway is now closed.

This giveaway is for one copy of In Stitches and is open to the US and Canada. A winner will be chosen randomly by me. The book will come directly from the publisher. Only one entry per person. Giveaway closes on June 17, 2011 (pacific). I will contact the winner for his/her mailing address.

Please note: To participate, you must complete the sign-up form AND “like” In Stitches on Facebook. This means that you must have a Facebook account to participate.

To enter the giveaway, please click here. (The giveaway is now closed)

To like In Stitches on Facebook, click here.

Pit Stops: Crossing the Country w/Loren the Rescue Bully
By Michelle Sathe
Say The Words Press
2010
182pp

The Short of It:

Pit Stops is the kind of cozy read that you can curl-up with. There’s some sadness yes, but ultimately a lot of hope and stories guaranteed to warm your heart.

The Rest of It:

Sathe is a journalist for my town’s local paper. When she hit the big 4-0, she decided to head out on a road trip across the country to help promote animal rescue, specifically for the “bully” breeds that tend to get a lot of bad press. To do this, she had to pick the perfect companion for the trip. That lucky girl was Loren, a homeless pit bull/staffordshire/bulldog mix who was living at The Brittany Foundation, a rescue sanctuary very close to my home. Sathe, also a volunteer and board member for the foundation, was hoping that at the end of the trip, Loren would find her forever home.

As short as this book is, it packs quite a punch. As Sathe visits with animal rescues across the country, she encounters folks from all walks of life who volunteer their time to help animals in need. As she spends time with Loren, she see first hand how people react to bully breeds. Even though Loren is an absolute love, people are often hesitant to come up to her unless they are familiar with the breed or have big dogs of their own. In addition to this reaction, some towns have legislation in place that prevents the adoption of such breeds. What this means is that many of the animals are destroyed because agencies are not able to adopt them out.

As Sathe treks across the country, she continually asks herself why some dogs find homes when others do not. What makes a family go for one dog over another? And why is it that when some dogs find homes, they just don’t work out in the long run? As frustrating as it was for Sathe to address this in the book, I have to say that it comes down to confidence. A potential owner has to have the confidence to handle a particular dog. Sometimes, this is a learning process and some are more willing to give into that gray area (where they admit that they have no confidence) in order to gain the knowledge needed to care for a particular breed, and others simply cave to their lack of confidence and end up bringing the animal back.

Having had an adoption experience that did not go well, many years ago, I can honestly say that I’ve been that person. The person that completely loses confidence and suddenly realizes that she’s completely out of her league. It’s a very humbling and life-changing experience to think that in all manners of life, you are quite successful yet you cannot care for a dog who wants nothing more than to be with you. Now, I am not the type of person to give up easily and I refused to take the dog back so we went forward with training only for the poor thing to have a heart attack at the vet. Needless to say, he didn’t make it, but we learned so much from that experience. Now, several years later we decided to rescue a puppy from the shelter and it’s been a completely different experience. Not perfect, but everyone in the family is confident this time around which I feel really makes a difference.

No matter where you stand on “bully” breeds, Pit Stops will appeal to many readers. Sathe is a foodie, so all of her stops center around must-visit restaurants and let me tell you, the food is to-die for! She had me drooling more than once. The moments she shares with Loren are truly special because Loren is such a character. A loyal companion but a bit of a comedian, too. Although, I do not know the author personally, I sure feel as if I do after reading the book. Oh, and I’ll forgive her for saying that “Safety Dance” is the stupidest 80’s song ever made. How can she not love Men Without Hats?? She obviously did not dress-up in a black trench coat and rock the Mod look during that time. Ha!

Humor aside, I encourage you to check out Sathe’s website. There, you can purchase a copy of the book, see photos of the meals she enjoyed, visit her blog and read more about Michelle and Loren.

Although I ended up not adopting from The Brittany Foundation, a few of the folks there went out of their way to answer my questions. If you have it in your heart to make a donation, please visit their website here.

Source: Given to me by a friend, via the author.

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