This is a book that taught me about maps
and the difference between betrayal and war.
This is a book that made my blood sing
and my hands itch to write poetry.
This is a book that taught me to respect history
and recognize maps not as something divine
but rather man-made and imperfect.
What is this book?

This is a book about lines on a map,
lines demarcating the boundaries
between countries,
between brothers and lovers,
between allies and enemies.

This is a book about physical histories:
these scars tell a story
that the memory cannot erase.
This is a book about psychological histories:
these memories tell a story
that the body cannot forget.

This is a book about all the different types of war
and the betrayals that can occur
between countries,
between brothers and lovers,
between allies and enemies.

But mostly, this is a book about the intersection
of four unlikely people:
a nurse from Canada,
a sapper from India,
a thief from Italy,
and the man who connects them all,
the English patient.