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I chose this book because I am an Infectious Diseases (ID) specialist who graduated from medical school in 1981 as the first cases were being reported of a new disease that would change the world. The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which is the cause of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), has now infected tens of millions of persons worldwide, caused an estimated 25 million deaths, and greatly affected the social structures and economies of developed and developing countries. Because I have devoted my clinical, research, and teaching career to infectious diseases and HIV/AIDS, Dr. Verghese's book has particular meaning to me.

Abraham Verghese, whom I have met twice (once in Hershey), is an ID specialist who started his career only one year before I did. In My Own Country: A Doctor's Story, Dr. Verghese describes his experiences as a new physician in a small town to which rather unexpectedly (or so it seemed) many HIV-infected persons were returning home to die. He movingly and compassionately describes how this illness profoundly affected his patients, their families, and himself, and in so doing, makes the value and beauty of a career in Infectious Diseases clear.