Was not too impressed. Just an ok read for me.

Kind of slow and disengaging.

Good storyline but felt a little let down.

The memoir begins on Nineteenth Street in Paris, Texas. The characters in this Northeast Texas hamlet are introduced via their homes, occupations, and histories. Reflections on childhood emulations to troublemakers evolve. Those who shaped the author by proximity encompass early memories before a family move brings a perceptional shift in the changing world of 1968. People remain at the center of these tales, aiding her transition from observation to purpose.

A career in medicine is finally realized, but interrupted by a season of depression, reconnecting the author to her past. Teachable moments experienced with the “patients themselves” are best revealed through their individual stories in the pediatric oncology wards, AIDS isolation rooms, and the “Butterfly suite.”
An eye opening read that I recommend

Part memoir part medical history of the town. A really lovely story of how one woman seeing suffering made her go in to medicine.

- Nothing more than a vanity project. The author counts and writes about every tom, dick, jane & harriet she came into contact with in childhood to adult years.
- There has to be something unique or anecdotal or funny in an ordinary life or environment for it to merit a book! But author simply catalogues everyone she met in life, mostly (neighboring) senior citizens, & what she remembers about them.
- No pictures/ images of anyone, including the author as a kid or of the places she's talking about.
- The version I read had more than 300 pages.