In Conversation with Abraham Verghese

Oprah's favorite author Abraham Verghese was in a fireside chat at SALA Festival 2024. He discussed his latest book "The Covenant of Water” and his life as a doctor, author, and bay area resident. He was in conversation with Art Forum SF chairman Dr. Ajit Singh
Abraham Verghese is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and the author of the NBCC Award finalist My Own Country, the New York Times Notable Book The Tennis Partner, and the aforementioned bestseller Cutting for Stone. Verghese has received five honorary degrees and is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He lives and practices medicine in Stanford, California where he is the Linda R. Meier and Joan F. Lane Provostial Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Abraham Verghese’s last book-the massive, word-of-mouth bestselling novel Cutting for Stone (2009)-sold over 1.5 million copies in the US, remained on the New York Times bestseller list for over two years, was translated into more than twenty languages, and is being adapted for film by Anonymous Content. Now, Verghese returns with an extraordinary and highly anticipated new novel, THE COVENANT OF WATER (Grove Press, 736 pages, $32, publication date: May 2, 2023), that is sure to solidify his reputation as one of our foremost contemporary literary writers.
Ajit Singh, PhD, has devoted his career to developing and fostering innovation in Technology and the Life Sciences. Dr. Singh has dedicated many years to leading and spearheading R&D and delivery in artificial intelligence, medical diagnostics, and health services. He incubated and piloted such efforts, first in Seimens and then as CEO at BioImagine. He then turned to Artiman Ventures, and to the task of supporting and investing in early-stage Med-Tech and Life Science enterprises. Dr Singh is on the board of several companies operating in this sphere. Also, donning his academic mantle, Dr Singh is a Consulting Professor in the School of Medicine at Stanford University and has authored several books and articles on a range of specialized subjects. Dr Singh’s background includes a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Columbia University, a Master's degree in Computer Engineering from Syracuse University and a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from Banaras Hindu University, India. An avid reader, Dr Singh also finds the time to publish his own Top-1 book review each year, which is featured in several blogs.