Review: THE WHITE COAT DIARIES by Madi Sinha (⭐️3.5/5)

This book is a little outside the typical genres I post about, but I have to admit, I couldn’t resist picking it up once I read the description. The MC’s practically a mirror reflection of myself: a young Indian American woman, in the medical field, practicing in the same city I went to college…yeah, no way I could skip this. 

To put it bluntly, Norah’s life kind of sucks. She struggles with impostor syndrome in her new position as an internal medicine intern (first year resident), has to contend with overwhelming and often exploitative working conditions, and deal with messy family issues on top. Sinha does a really great job of capturing the complexities and absurdities of the medical profession, constructing a setting that pulls you in to the story. 

I think one of the biggest strengths of this novel, and one that I honestly haven’t seen that many contemporary authors do very well, is in exploring the way individuals internalize culture and how it affects their choices. Reading this book, it’s clear to see how Norah’s Indian upbringing influences the way she approaches social and romantic relationships. Usually when culture is explored in these kinds of books, it’s forced upon the MC externally—parents pushing the the MC into an arranged marriage, family disapproves of MC’s career choice, whatever. But Norah’s decision making process finds its basis on the way that SHE internalizes the values of her culture, not only through external agents, which I find very authentic and refreshing.

Norah isn’t always a likeable protagonist—there were times were I was just ???? at the way she treated some of her friends. I also felt that the plot, which kind of transforms from smaller scandals to a larger ethical dilemma, was a bit underdeveloped in the beginning and just kind of fizzled out at the end. 

Still, overall, I very much enjoyed this book and looked forward to reading more each time I had to put it down—I think that speaks for itself!

I loved this book so much! It's basically Grey's Anatomy back when the OG doctors were interns and I am here for it.

Norah Kapadia, the main character, is a new resident at Philly General and has worked hard to get where she is. She has followed a specific path from the time she was a little girl -- become a doctor, follow in her father's footsteps. But she soon finds that it's not as easy as studying textbooks and passing exams. She makes some pretty big mistakes along the way and even finds herself in the middle of a love triangle she never thought she'd be in. Combine all of her work stress with the stress of trying to be the "perfect Indian daughter" and it's a recipe for disaster. Norah has to look deep inside herself and come to terms with what she really wants in life.

I loved the characters and especially Norah. Her voice gave a seriousness to the book that you don't get in Grey's but she was also funny and witty at times as well as super naive. The supporting characters were so likable and it was just such a fun read. Norah's sister in law can go on somewhere though.

This is such a great book and a quick one to read. I couldn't put it down!

I saw Grey’s Anatomy meets Scrubs and knew I wanted to read this book. One of the things I really enjoyed was because Madi Sinha is a doctor, the language and emotions in the book felt very authentic.

Where do I really begin with this book? It was truly a pleasure to follow Norah Kapadia’s journey through being a young doctor in her internship at a very prestigious hospital, as well as, navigating complex family dynamics.

In this story, the author makes you understand the trials and hardships that happen every day for doctors and nurses in fast paced settings. You feel as if you are on the front lines with them and more than once I found myself a little nervous as to what the outcomes would be.

One thing that stood out was just how relatable of a main character Dr. Kapadia was. She was a flawed character, just like the rest of us, learning as she goes and making poor choices and many mistakes. It was a breath of fresh air reading a book that reminds us all that we are human and life is about learning from those mistakes.

ARC provided by Berkeley Pub via Netgalley.
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Initially, I was hesitant to review this one, because no matter how valid the representation is, I wish South Asian stories could be more than “I’m a doctor/I want to be a doctor/my family is oppressive,” etc. But since that is also part of our story, I went ahead and read this.

It’s in present tense, which is one of the deal breakers for me, but I got over that more quickly than normal. The story alternates between life as an intern/resident in a hospital and Norah’s struggles with her family, but...it’s not so much of a plot as much as a day-to-day diary. There were long expositions of patient experiences that didn’t contribute to the overall story. Nothing happens until about 75% in, but because all of the characters were undeveloped, you’re not really rooting for any of them. Overall, the plot was choppy, there were multiple time jumps, and the characters were all one-dimensional, more or less.

Norah was also not easy to root for - her entire identity was rooted in her job, which is fine, but you don’t have anything to grasp of her own personality outside of that. Her mistakes and angst reminded me of someone in their teens, not late twenties, I found the lack of self-awareness and growth to be very grating.

I did appreciate the mention of sex in South Asian culture, and though I completely got the context, I wish it had more nuance in the struggles of growing up between Eastern and Western cultures. The simplification reminded me of what it’s like to explain your culture to those outside of it.

This did have one win for me, though: the integrations of her culture and family were fairly seamless. It was a good representation of what it’s like, but it didn’t make her ethnicity the whole story.

I would’ve loved to love this book, but it fell short in many ways for me. Others may feel differently.

UPDATE: Only after I finished the book, did I see in other reviews how the author went after a black and indigenous blogger. I do not condone that, and was unaware of that when I agreed to read/review this book.

By turns heartfelt and hilarious, The White Coat Diaries is an excellent addition to collections where medical memoirs and women's fic is popular.

I'm a former paramedic and loved this book. It took me back to the challenges of not only emergency medicine but also being a young woman in a male dominated field

Norah - aka Dr. Kapadia is at times not likeable and sometimes takes a victims tone (but don't we all?) but for the most part, this fiction book (which almost reads like a memoir) is fascinating and full of ups and downs. 
 f you want to understand emergency medicine or you're in emergency medicine, I think you'll devour this book. 

Also, it's a nice departure from they typical: Works in NYC for a magazine/marketing company!

I won't be reading or reviewing this book after how the author acted on Twitter attacking a reviewer for DNFing her book.

I couldn’t put down The White Coat Diaries because I was just enjoying the story that much! 

I am a big fan of medical related shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Scrubs where they follow doctors from interns and on, so I knew this would be a book for me! 

The story centers around medical intern Norah Kapadia as she balances the demands of working the long, exhausting shifts in the hospital while also dealing with the strains put in place by her family and trying to be the “good Indian daughter.” 

I really enjoyed how fully developed the characters and the plot line were. What I look for most in books is that it feels like a well rounded story where you have many different elements that compliment each other and makes it feel realistic. And I believe that author Madi Sinha hit the nail on the head!

Right from the beginning this book throws us into the unpredictable world of the hospital where each patient brings their own challenges as the intern class tries to apply what they learned in school into practice. I felt like I was there with Norah when she had a few of her mishaps- sometimes I was laughing and sometimes I was cringing.

Having Norah’s family life into the story was impactful and well thought out. Sometimes this element can few forced in other novels, but that was far from the case in this one.  Seeing how her Indian American family treated Norah was integral into knowing what fueled Norah’s actions. It was also educational!

The many characters of the hospital, like the rom com movie loving grumpy chef, rounded out the story nicely! 

There were times when I liked Norah and times when I wanted to sit Norah down and talk some sense into her! That’s when I knew I was fully invested into what was- and wasn’t- happening. 

What made the book even better is that the author is a Doctor so I had trust that the scenes involving patients and medicine were accurate. 

I don’t give out 5 stars lightly and this book earned each one! I just would classify this more as contemporary fiction rather than contemporary romance as the majority of the story did not focus on the romance.

I really wanted to like The White Coat Diaries, and went back and forth between 3 and 4 stars for a bit on how to land on this review. Ultimately, a few things stuck out to me, especially when it comes to character development: 
Norah: awfully naive about the world, especially when it comes to Ethan and Elle, and attitudes towards sex. The defense that she grew up in the Indian community and therefore wasn't around sex is baffling to me, especially after attending college and medical school. 
Mom: Her mom's movements through the world after losing her husband are in stark difference to my own mother-in-law, who hates when her kids hover around her. She wants to prove that she's self-sufficient, even when she actually can't do something. 

I also kept waiting for the big problem in the novel to hit, but it didn't come until 70% of the way through the story. I hated Norah's response to trying to fix the issue, especially in light of how discipline is handled during a medical internship. Further, for someone so intelligent, I didn't understand Norah's decision making process at all. 

My last piece of criticism was that I didn't understand the end of the novel in Norah's story arc - it just didn't make sense that she became who she did by the end of the book. 

The White Coat Diaries did also read very quickly for me - I finished it in a weekend. I loved reading another #ownvoices story, even if I didn't connect with the main character that well. I did like some components of the book: 
-The meddlesome aunties
-The realness that friendships require work and trust, even with your oldest of friends.
-The beginning of residency drama

PROBLEMATIC AUTHOR ALERT!

I will not be reading and reviewing this book thanks to the author deciding to attack a BIPOC book blogger on Twitter who didn’t enjoy this book.

his story follows Norah, an intern at hospital who is struggling to adjust at her new job. She did well in medical school, but actually working inside of hospital proves to be very different than what she learned in the textbooks she studied. Norah quickly finds camaraderie with her fellow interns in the Internal Medicine Department as they work their way though each shift.

Norah feels as if she’s at a crossroads in her life. Shes struggling in her career but also feels like she has to take care of her mother who has health issues and needs daily help. Being a doctor is important to her because she’s carrying on her dad’s legacy, but she is unsure if she can handle the job. She also is going through a process of self-reflection in her life. She wants more for her self but unsure of the steps she needs to take to move forward.

I like how this novel balances the lighter moments with more serious ones. There’s a lot of comedic moments that will have the reader smiling. It also talks about some deeper topics like caring for a sick parent, depression, and grief. his novel also acts as a coming of age story. Even though Norah is an adult she still has some growing up to do in her job and in her personal life she gets put into sticky situations. Her decisions have a butterfly effect. Shes not perfect, but she’s trying to be a more confident person, she puts her needs before everyone else, and is having trouble navigating her love life. All these characteristics make her human and realistic, its a character that people can relate to.

I though the writing was very detailed overall and I enjoyed how the Sinha (a physician herself) described the inner workings of the hospital and the obstacles that medical professionals deals with on a daily basis. Norah is forced to make some hard decisions in her career and personal especially learning how to take care of patients. I didn’t like how the book got to a climactic point and then jumped forward in time towards the end. It felt a bit jarring but this (time jump) worked out in the end. Other than that I thoroughly enjoyed this medical/romance/slice of life novel.

This book was dull from the get go.

I struggled to get through the first quarter and then realized this was yet another author writing “women’s fiction.”  Look, if you don’t want to write romance, call it fiction.  Please stop trying to have it both ways.

The twitter fiasco simply convinced me this book and author aren’t for me.

The White Coat Diaries by Madi Sinha. What a fun summer read! Norah is a well-drawn self-deprecating character. I loved the medical terminology, Indian food, and hot gossip in the call room. Highly recommend for readers 17-up.

Amazing read.  This book had interesting medical facts, and an inside look at the health care system. 
Our main character was developed well and I had a sense of friendship with her on her journey. 
The book does use profanity and those offended by the use of the f-word might avoid the book.  
Mature topics and descriptive medical procedures that are not for the faint of heart. 
The story development and character are five star.  One star removed due to not being able to recommend to all due to language

I stayed up until 3:00 in the morning devouring THE WHITE COAT DIARIES. I'm not sure the last time I read an entire book in one night. I couldn't put it down. The heroine was so thoroughly charming, I was rooting for her from the first cringe-worthy, wrought days as a new medical intern through her challenges to reconcile family and cultural expectations, and along her journey of professional and personal self-discovery. Sinha's writing is funny (I laughed out loud several times), heartfelt without tipping into melodramatic, and it delivers a pointed and deeply human insider view of life in a hospital. While a romantic entanglement is part of Norah's journey, this book is unflinchingly a story of personal growth. 

Thank you to the author and Berkley for an early copy.

Norah is an intern at a hospital in Philadelphia, torn between memories of her late father and his devotion to medicine with the traditional expectations of her mother, brother and South Asian family.  Norah is socially naive, after having spent her time with a nose in books, so is unprepared when a resident shows her some attention.  I was struck by the author’s indictment of the medical field for not putting the patient first, but the worries of lawsuits and insurance concerns impacting decisions.  I like it, and thank NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Meet Norah Kapadia, new to the resident rotation at Philadelphia General Hospital.  Norah’s dream has been to enter into the medical field, following her late father’s footsteps as a well-known and respected pediatrician.  But her first day isn’t so promising.  So far, she’s had a needle stick, and I won’t even tell you what happens to the code blue patient.  Norah finds herself hiding in the supply closet, wondering if she has made the biggest mistake of her life.

Norah struggles with starting her career and dealing with patients, always conscious of her oath to do no harm.  Or is she?  What happens when a fatal error occurs, and ethics flies out the window?  And can she manage to balance her duties and responsibilities of being a daughter, sister and friend with a schedule that involves an occasional night of rest?  Oh, and love may have finally found her.

Sinha’s writing is witty, wryly humorous and heartfelt in all the right places.  The book is definitely character-driven rather than plot-driven.  Norah is someone you root for, even if she doesn’t always make the best choices.  While I will say that I would have preferred a different ending, it was still a great book.  If you were a fan of St. Elsewhere, ER and Grey’s Anatomy, then this is the book for you!

https://candysplanet.wordpress.com/

Norah has made it through medical school and is entering her residency in Philadelphia while trying to help support her brother in north Jersey, who is trying to take care of their elderly, widowed mother and begin his life independent of her with his wife and children. Her mother really only wants Norah married off to a respectable Indian man and living nearby raising a family of her own--there's no need for her to become a doctor! 

This was a quick and entertaining read!

Thank you to @berkleypub via @netgalley for a copy of this delightful book. It is that perfect combination of fun and substance. It dabbled in relationships via friends, lovers, and family to moral decisions, and the business piece in the medical/healthcare  industry...all while medical scenarios were in the background. So I definitely felt liked it lived up to the hype of a mash up of Grey’s Anatomy and Scrubs so look out for this one when it publishes on September 15. You will definitely want to add this to your list for your fall reading. It will be just what the doctor ordered...I know...but I couldn’t resist. 😂🤣

Instagram @carolinehoppereads and Goodreads

Norah has always had a one track mind. Follow in her fathers footsteps and become a doctor. She has finally reached her intern year and things aren’t going quite as planned. Her mother needs her more than ever, she hasn’t had a single solid nights sleep in forever, one of the Doctors has made her his errand boy, and she is still trying to live up to being the “perfect” Indian daughter. It’s not possible to do all of the above at the same time, and adding falling for her chief resident and covering up his mistake makes for a very stressful intern year.

Compare a book to Greys Anatomy and I’m there! While it had some Greys vibes, I think this one was a little bit more on the serious side, but I could see this situation happening on the show. This is the third book I have read recently where the main character is an Indian woman, and I have found the look at the culture to be fascinating. I loved that Norah had goals for herself and didn’t let her families wishes stop her from reaching those goals. I think this book is probably scarily similar to what a doctor faces during their intern year, and man, I just don’t get it. Why are we working people 80+ hours a week, until they are asleep on their feet? That seems counterproductive to having successful Doctors, but that’s just my opinion! Overall I really loved this one! If you are a Greys fan, you will too!