My Own Country, LO Reads event at Lakewood

2011 Lake Oswego Reads Event
Movie: My Own Country
February 16, 7:00 P.M. At the Lakewood Center for the Arts, 
368 S. State St.


Directed by Mira Nair, this movie tells the true story of the author of Cutting for Stone, Abraham Verghese who settled in Johnson City, Tennessee.  He specialized in infectious diseases. It’s 1985, and AIDS is spreading from the big cities to the rural areas. Abraham takes AIDS as his personal crusade and is soon well-known for his compassion and non-judgmental treatment.  The movie stars Naveen Andrews, Glenne Headly, Hal Holbrook and Marisa Tomei.

The Story: In this moving true story, an East Indian doctor takes over a hospital department of infectious diseases in rural Tennessee, just as the AIDS epidemic is sweeping the nation. Naveen Andrews (The English Patient) plays Dr. Abraham Verghese, a young family man who immerses himself in the lives of his patients. First, he must educate the residents of Johnson City, Tennessee, about AIDS. "What was common in New York and San Francisco was unheard of here," says Verghese. Before long, however, the compassionate Dr. Verghese is overwhelmed with a caseload of 82 people suffering with AIDS from hundreds of miles around.

The acting in the film is first rate, with Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei playing a simple southern girl whose beloved brother (played by her real-life sibling, Adam Tomei) is dying of the disease. Glenne Headly’s portrayal of a dirt-poor housewife who catches AIDS from her philandering husband is also especially strong. Mira Nair, director of such films as Mississippi Masala, brings her intimate knowledge of Indian traditions to the film, lending invaluable authenticity to its theme of clashing cultures. An engrossing, heart-rending picture

For the latest event schedule of Lake Oswego reads please click here.

Lake Oswego Reads is sponsored by the West Coast Bank, Friends of the Lake Oswego Library and the Lake Oswego Rotary Club. For more information, contact Cyndie Glazer at 503-675-2538 or by email at cglazer@ci.oswego.or.us.