Dr. Book entertained the idea of becoming a plastic surgeon before finding his way to family medicine. He says he enjoys family practice because he sees “a little bit of everything” and gets well acquainted with is patients. “It’s never boring,” he said. “And I get to know everyone, from the new babies to the siblings and parents to the grandparents. I’m now taking care of the kids of the babies I delivered long ago. It’s a privilege.” Dr. Book was in private practice in La Junta for the past 24 years. He loved his patients. He loved his community. The practice was his baby, he said. “It was hard to leave.” But being a sole practitioner was also challenging because in addition to being on-call to care for his patients around-the-clock, he also sometimes had to answer the office phone, schedule patients, worry about shoveling the parking lot and get the plumbing fixed. “It was time to slow down a little,” Dr. Book said.

Now, at Prowers Medical Center, Dr. Book is part of a robust primary-care team. He and six nurse practitioners share the responsibility of providing primary care to the Lamar-area community. “My colleagues are excellent providers,” he said. “Since I have 30 years’ experience, I bring some wisdom to the team. I’m here for support. I’m happy to consult at any time.” In addition to broad-spectrum family practice, Dr. Book has particular skills and interest in orthopedics care and sports medicine. He also performs some cosmetics procedures, such as Botox injections and scar revisions. “Medicine is my life,” he said. “I strive to take great care of patients. It’s about paying attention to the details.”

Dr. Book has been married to Sharon, a Flagler native, for 37 years. They have three grown children, one of whom lives four houses down the street from the Books, in Swink. Which means Dr. Book gets to enjoy his two grandkids all the time. When he’s not doctoring or hanging out with his family, you’ll probably find Dr. Book watching sports or playing a round of golf. “I’m a sports nut,” he confessed. He especially loves football and basketball—sports he played in high school. But he likes baseball, too. In fact, it seems like he’d happily attend any local sports event. It’s one of the other reasons he loves small-town living. “Ball is life,” he concluded.