Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story by Ben Carson During Black History Month, one of my Facebook friends was posting pictures of influential African Americans in the place of her profile photo. For some reason, the photograph of Ben Carson caught my eye.

After doing some digging (google searching), I discovered that Dr. Carson is a prominent pediatric neurosurgeon currently practicing in Baltimore. Since February, all of his works have been on my must read list. I recently completed Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story. Carson’s path to success is clearly spelled out in this book. Each step acting as a guide to how a poor kid from Detroit, would become a Yale graduate and the 11th African American to become a board certified neurologist in the United States. I found this to be an inspiring story that could easily be mistaken as a work of fiction.

Carson identifies several defining moments in his life. All of which prepared him for the profession that he chose while in grade school. At eight years old, he decided that he wanted to be a doctor. The culmination of events that followed would reveal that Carson was destined to be a doctor.

His ability to overcome numerous obstacles convinced him that with a Bible and a prayer, he could depend on God to change any situation. Several mishaps allow Carson to repeatedly express this sentiment throughout the book. For anyone that doesn’t believe there is a God or that He answers prayers, Carson’s story may lead you to reevaluate that belief. Carson dedicated this book to his mother, whose decision that he would only be able to watch three programs a week as a child completely changed his view on education. When not watching television, the rest of his time was to be spent in the library. Her rationale? "If you can read, you can learn just about anything you want to know."

Once Carson put all of his lessons learned in motion, the rest is history - rather history in the making. At 33 years old, he was named the Chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins. Today at 58 years old, he continues to perform surgeries that other surgeons deem impossible. His separation of conjoined twins, ability to remove half of a brain, and the lasting effect of losing pediatric patients are all chronicled in this book.

It has become a goal of mine to meet Dr. Ben Carson, even if only to say - Thank you for being an inspiration.

Related Links

Read a review the the film adpatation of Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story

Ben Carson’s Books