byAbraham Verghese
In his commanding novel Cutting For Stone, Abrahm Verghese skilfully brings to life the dichotomy that was Addis Ababa during the 1960's,'70's, and '80's an era of horrendous political upheaval, and social unrest, that transformed the ancient hidden Christian African empire of King Haile Selassie into the Stalinist revolutionary misery under Mengistu, to the final collapse of Mengistu's regime of terror. This is the background to a story of a family, living through these turbulent times. It is a story of love and betryal, death and survival, broken promises and shattered lives, but most of all love.
This novel is the story of twin brothers born in unusual circumstances and the bonds that bind them. The story tells their incredible life journey and what a fasinating journey it is.
There is a lot of medical detail in the novel which might not be to everyone's taste ( not as pretty as ER) but I feel that this adds to the dept of the story lending it more credibility. Prior to reading this book I knew less than nothing about Ethiopia and I was enthralled by the background of Ethiopia's political convulsions during the middle of the twentieth century.
This book has been a huge hit in the US,on this side of the Atlantic it has been less successful, however I believe it is one of those superb books that slowly builds it popularity through word of mouth and friend recommendation. It would make an excellent choice for any book club.
Quite simply I Loved it!
Elaine
This is a fantastic and very original book. I loved it too.
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