Books and Things

Ever wonder why your doctor became... well, a doctor? This is a memoir of Tony Youn, MD and how and why he became a doctor of plastic surgery. He starts the memoir at 2 days old where his father, a "baby doctor" declares that he will become a doctor as well. Even though his mother admonishes him to at least wait until the second week of life to declare his son's profession, she knows that his father will not be denied. So, Tony grows up with the knowledge that he will be a doctor no matter what since he is loathe to disappoint his father. As he grows he also feels awkward as a teen and has his real first brush with what corrective surgery can do for a person. The person is Tony and he has his overgrown jaw broken twice so he could look more normal. The mantra of teenage-dom.

Of course we follow him though college and finally to his residency. Along the way we see epiphanies in which he finds that he really does want to be a doctor and why. This is also where the humor for me really picks up. When a disfigured child is brought into the NICU he is fascinated with how the plastic surgeon thinks and what he believes he can change for the child. This starts Tony on his way to becoming the surgeon he wants to be. It also becomes very surreal in some ways because of all the different doctors and administrators he encounters.

I give this book 3 1/2 stars. If you ever thought of becoming a doctor... or like me... knows someone who wants to be one, I think this is a great memoir to give them. I think they will connect to it even more than I did.