Physician-writer Abraham Verghese is the Linda Meir and Joan Lane Professor and Vice Chair in the department of medicine at Stanford University, and director of PRESENCE, a research center exploring the art and science of human connection. He is the author of the non-fiction books My Own Country and The Tennis Partner. His debut novel Cutting for Stone was on the New York Timesbestseller list for over a 100 weeks and was named as one of Amazon’s “100 Books to Read in a Lifetime.” Verghese’s most recent novel, The Covenant of Water, debuted in hardcover on the New York Times bestseller list in 2023, was a Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2023, and one of Audible’s 2023 Best Audiobooks (read by Verghese). Oprah selected Covenant for her Book Club and optioned the movie rights; it is in production with Netflix . Verghese is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine, and the American Academy of Arts & Letters.  in 2016, President Obama honored him with a National Humanities Medal.

Photo credit: Christopher Michel