Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
Category: Nonfiction
Dr. Paul Farmer devotes much of his life to caring for the poor in Haiti, where diseases like tuberculosis and AIDS run rampant, made much worse by the abject poverty in which many Haitians live. Dr. Farmer is an absolutely driven man who keeps a crazy schedule, constantly advocates for his patrients, and expects a lot of himself and others. His story is both challenging and inspiring.
I read this for a community group read in my hometown. Kidder takes a very personal approach in writing this story, even showing up as a "character" from time to time. As a result, he emphasizes Dr. Farmer's personal approach to medicine and shows Dr. Farmer in a very human light. I thought it was neat that he loved The Lord of the Rings, and especially liked the story about how, as a preteen, he asked a librarian to find another story "just like this one." Fantasy didn't work, but War and Peace did (I can only wonder how she came up with that - did she make a connection between the stories, or was she just frustrated?). 4.5 stars.
Cross-posted at Born Reader.
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