The White Coat Diaries

September 14, 2020
Physician Sinha sparkles in her enjoyable and realistic debut about an ambitious 26-year-old Indian American medical resident going through training. Norah Kapadia is facing a lot of pressure to be the perfect Indian daughter and a standout student. On top of that, she feels awkward around men in social situations and painfully aware of still feeling like a shy teenager. After she lands her prestigious internal medicine residency spot at Philadelphia General Hospital, she’s excited to get started—even more so once she meets the chief resident, Ethan Cantor, who starts out as Norah’s mentor and soon becomes the funny, smart, and charming man of her dreams. But as Norah learns, looks can be deceiving. After a member of their team makes a major mistake resulting in a patient’s death, Norah is forced to choose between covering up for her colleague and telling the truth—which may get her fired. The author writes with the expertise of a physician who has slogged through her own residency and training, realistically depicting the insane hours, the need to make life-changing decisions in moments, and the camaraderie among classmates. All dutiful daughters and hard workers will see themselves in Norah. Sinha’s tale is one to savor.