Summer Orientation Reading
This year's text is God's Hotel: A Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine by Victoria Sweet.
San Francisco's Laguna Honda Hospital has been described as "the last almshouse in the country, a descendant of the Hôtel-Dieu (God's hotel) that cared for the sick in the Middle Ages." Dancers, professors, and thieves – anyone, really – who had fallen on hard times might end up at Laguna Honda, where they could stay as long as was necessary. In
God's Hotel: A Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine Dr. Victoria Sweet writes about her 20 years at Laguna Honda, presenting interesting parallels between a hospital and a residence hall and providing opportunities for the reader to explore issues of community. A colorful cast of characters that run through the book – doctors, nurses, and Dr. Sweet's extraordinary patients – provides something for every reader to connect with and enjoy.
God's Hotel: A Doctor, a Hospital, and a Pilgrimage to the Heart of Medicine (Riverhead Trade, ISBN-10: 1594486549, ISBN-13: 978-1594486548) is available in bookstores and online.
