In today’s New York Times, this recollection of a classic desi coming-of-age dilemma:
Both his parents are physicians, he added — his father a urologist and his mother a pediatrician — and growing up in Athens, Ohio, he tried hard not to follow in their footsteps. “This idea that a bright Indian kid is supposed to be a doctor — I resisted that,†he said. “I wanted to be a rock star. I played guitar and wrote songs and even had a couple of club shows. I was just terrible.â€
So Atul Gawande became… a surgeon. A celebrity surgeon, in fact, thanks to his side practice as a writer; he’s a regular presence in the New Yorker, his book Complications came out last year to critical acclaim — Amardeep wrote about it here — and a new book, Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance, is out this week.
So now that he’s, like, this author, we get to accompany him into the operating room where we learn that the brother never gave up his love for music; indeed, he gets to inflict his musical taste on the O.R. personnel, though, he allows, “You can’t play anything hard-hitting if there’s anyone over 45.” Thus:
On a recent day, when he took out a gallbladder, two thyroids and what was supposed to be a parathyroid gland but maybe wasn’t, the playlist included David Bowie, Arcade Fire, Regina Spektor, Aimee Mann, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, the Decemberists and the Killers.
My favorite bit in the article, however, isn’t about the music but rather about how Gawande found himself becoming a writer, shaking off a dismal experience in college when a writing instructor, in a moment of brilliant teaching technique, “told him that he could write a sentence but had nothing to say.” At some point Gawande started contributing to Slate, and his characterization of writing for that particular outlet is a masterpiece of damnation with faint praise:
“Slate was perfect for me,†he explained, “because it enabled me to fly under the radar. It was just like going through surgical residency. I did 30 columns for them, and it was like doing 30 gallbladders. Then I had to learn how to get comfortable with 4,000-word and then 8,000-word essays for The New Yorker.â€
Okay, so he’s had a charmed life; I know plenty of writers who would die for a Slate commission, and the “advance directly to New Yorker” scenario is not exactly commonplace. Oh, did I mention he also has a MacArthur grant? Still, in my book at least, anyone who likens writing for Slate to extracting a gallbladder — and can back it up with actual experience — earns a toast of love, not Haterade.
“Still, in my book at least, anyone who likens writing for Slate to extracting a gallbladder — and can back it up with actual experience — earns a toast of love.”
Hear, hear. I agree. Checked out the ARC of the new book and it’s awesome–even if I had read most of the essays earlier in the New Yorker. Dr. Gawande is a class act. It helps that he is quite some eye candy 😉
Agree. I love everything he writes. Even his columns in the New Yorker are perfect – he just explains medical things in a way that everyone can understand. On residency interviews everyone would always ask me who my biggest career inspiration was and I would always say him — I would love to write a book about my own specialty for the layperson.
god, i love him.
ROCKSTAR 🙂
his books are fantastic. i agree with rupa wholeheartedly: writing a book about my specialty would be on my ‘things to do’ list as well..
you know what would be funny? celebrity death match: sanjay gupta md vs. atul gawande md
round one?
and i smiled at this quote from the article: “It turns out you can be a doctor and be almost anything,†he said.“Even a writer.â€
Rupa: get your
typewritercomputer outCommence turning green with envy……now!
Reminds me of an article I read a long time back about how the current generation growing up in India lacks idols and how they just keep clinging on to the latest bollywood sensation or past his glory days Sachin Tendulkar. This dude fits the idol profile perfectly, someone a kid growing up can look up to.. someone should market him as one. He is awesome!
OH! Athens (OH).. Home away from home.
I thought the name (Gawande) was familiar!
The Sr. Gawande is a father figure to every ISA committee at Ohio University! 🙂
Hey chick pea!! Atul Gawande is bigger but I would put my money on Sanjay Gupta … he has the street cred from all his time in Iraq, y’know.
HOLLLLLLLYYYY CRAPPPPPP!!! There is a Indian guy that is also a doctor? I never thought I see the day. And he also listen’s to music? What type of human being has the capacity to both be a doctor and listen to music? I am guessing he is from the future where human’s have evolved to the point where their brain’s can handle that kind of stimuli.
Yeah, I’m jealous!! SO WHAT?
Hey ShallowThinker. Peep the books he wrote dawg. He’s like the Malcolm Gladwell of medicine.
I wish he had a injected a Bhangra Bolly track in his music list. Now, that would be so brown 🙂
And i liked the photo spread, sooooooooo mysterious.
I’m thinking…does this guy need anymore love? Obviously the universe loves him. I’m just glad he wasn’t wasn’t in my family’s social group growing up.
Damn! He’s goodlooking too?!!
Great writer. Seems a lot less self-involved than S Gupta.
Love and Haterade needs more love and less Haterade. It’s one thing to be curious, uninformed and unintentionally rude and it’s another thing to be ignorant. I get plenty of stares at Indian weddings or the “Oh wow he can eat Indian food!” comments. Some folks need a little guidance as it takes time to break down stereotypes and dispell misinformation.
How was the Final Four Chick Pea? Ready for the OJ Mayo era?
What is this, some kind of genetic perfect storm?
for those who are in these cities, gawande is going to have book signings, lectures… alas ATL isn’t on the damn list.
and for more insight to his macarthur fellowship and interivew on charlie rose, look here
as for the final four asha’s dad.. it was FABULOUS.. both days were fantastic.. we got to meet a lot of players, hang out..and in the end, we painted our faces red, wore fro’s and had a hell of a time rooting for ohio (usc trojan red works for them..call brother bean and myself the bandwagon fans..).. it was a great ‘one shining moment’… a great night for florida.. a moment where teamwork shined.. very impressive..too bad ohio could NOT MAKE A 3 pointer if their lives depended on it (4/23?)
asha’s dad: do you think oden has an endocrine problem? acromegaly perhaps.. there is something wrong with his facial features.. too coarse.. he looks like lebron james..but he doesn’t look LIKE A FRESHMAN!
I begrudgingly love this bit. And thanks for reminding me of L&H. I heart Barmaid!
To quote The Onion fake quoting Oden on his appearance in the final 4: “Im happier than I’ve been in 30 years'”
“Damn! He’s goodlooking too?!!”
‘fraid so! Not that’s saying much but the Times gives their blessings too: “He is tall, handsome, brilliant..”
Sigh! The good doctor can work on my parathyroid any time he wishes 😉
Ha!! Ha ha ha. Most of the time I think it would have been kind of fun or maybe a little easier to grow up with other Indian kids but sometimes I’m really, really happy that I didn’t. If I would have had to go through high school with this guy as the “other Indian kid” I would be one tightly wound ball of insecurity right now.
It’s sure getting competitive
Couldn’t help noticing where else the book is releasing within weeks – Taiwan, UK, India, Korea, Netherlands, Oz, NZ !
Three book signing events just in SF over two days (including Kepler’s), two each in Portland and Seattle, Commencement Addresses at Penn and at Johns Hopkins – Wow. This is big. This is Huge. This is Stupendous. This is COLOSSAL. This is GIGANTIC.
Normally I would wonder who you would have to be for something like this to happen to you – now I know – Atul Gawande!
mr. chacaji: it is HUGE and he’s going to powell bookstore in portland.. it’s like the best bookstore ever!
oh mr. shallow thinker.. thanks for the chuckle of the day..and my onion fix nevertheless (but in all honestly, he has some hormonal problem..gut feeling).. now onto finding me some mouthwash..
after he works on the parathyroid of his wife and 3 kiddies ;)..
hmm..maybe oden has an abnormal parathyroid gland..and needs to see dr. gawande.. now that would be a blog comment coming full circle 🙂
I think he’s great, but I don’t get it. He wrote the essays in his first book during a surgical residency, before the 80 hour work week, so he was likely working 120+ hrs a week at the hospital, but still managed to write, get married and have a kid? Maybe he doesn’t sleep…
Can’t wait to read his new book.
read his first book and loved it! Can’t wait for the second…its scary how brilliant this guy is!
but ladies, or men who are interested-he really isn’t that cute. Unless you’re into the typical studious desi look..check out his pic.
http://www.gawande.com/bio.htm
http://www.brighamandwomens.org/surgery/research/facultypages/GawandeResearch.aspx
Not trying to bash him (I think he’s great too), but how much time does he get to spend with his family? Too many of these high-output guys — Rushdie, Tharoor, Verghese, etc. — end up divorced.
His insights are hardly novel within the medical profession. Ask any physician. Getting these published is another matter. Deconstructing the once reverential field of medicine for the public is increasingly becoming on par with the criticisms of other fields.
What Atul says is novel mainly to those outside of the field. No genius in that.
Your title cracked me up Siddhartha.
Thank you 🙂
“What Atul says is novel mainly to those outside of the field. No genius in that.”
Sure — but he explains medicine to the layperson and in that there is genius.
Yes, chickpea, I know he is married with kids. Did you really have to remind me? 🙂
I don’t know, but in this article, written during residency, he calls his wife “high maintenance”.
http://www.slate.com/id/3729/entry/24692/
As someone who is married to a surgeon, I think being low maintenance is pretty much a prerequisite for staying married to someone in that profession. Maybe he just means she likes to spend his money.
man, the way that article makes it sound, he just went to (harvard) medical school because he wasn’t good at anything else. and then started writing for slate on a whim. -_-
i do enjoy his writing (though i find it almost too detached and “clinical” at times…) though sometimes i find super accomplished people like him unnerving rather than inspiring. only sometimes though! 🙂
the ny times also featured another harvard doc-slash-new yorker writer this week with a new book out…no desi connection, but might be interesting to the gawande fans out there.:p
p.s. not that it matters, but complications came out a few years ago, not last year.
Aha! Dr. Gawande is not perfect afterall! He’s named is kid “Walker”. Why do people name their kids Walker, Taylor, Hunter….?!!!
Chick Pea,
Oden definitely looks older than stated age, but he all his physical features seem normal. I haven’t gotten a look at his hands or feet to see if they’re spade shaped, but they appear normal. He doesn’t look like Andre the Giant, Jaws from the James Bond films, or George Mureson (all famous people with acromegaly). Oden just seems like he’s 18 going on 35. He just seems so beaten down, like he’s got 3 kids at home with a 4th on the way and two mortgage payments.
Contrast Oden with Kevin Durant, the baby faced assassin from the Longhorns.
White people from the suburbs give their kids last names for their first names, like Walker, Taylor, Hunter, Chase, Reese, Madison, or Kaitlen
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I also like his playlist which includes David Bowie, Arcade Fire, Regina Spektor, Aimee Mann, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, the Decemberists and the Killers.