First published 2020
Michele Harper stands out in the emergency room as a Black woman in a field dominated by white men. Raised in an abusive household in Washington, DC, she pushed through Harvard and medical school with her husband by her side. Two months before starting her position at a Philadelphia hospital, he abandons the marriage, refusing to relocate. Harper enters her new role alone in an unfamiliar city. Each patient she encounters becomes a teacher. Through their struggles with broken bodies and spirits, she discovers universal truths about human fragility. Her patients show her how to release fear when the path ahead remains unclear. They demonstrate the power of honesty over convenient lies. They reveal that compassion differs from justice. As Harper witnesses the systematic barriers her patients face in maintaining health and dignity, she learns to reconcile her painful past while drawing strength from her present circumstances. Her journey from broken daughter to skilled physician illuminates the healing process we all must navigate.
Genres: medical, social-issues, non-fiction, biography-memoir
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, overcoming-adversity
Setting: Harvard, Philadelphia, Washington DC
Period: 21st-century
304 pages · Hardcover · Riverhead Books
Content warnings: abuse, domestic-violence, medical-trauma