Dr. Mona Sadek's autobiography is available at Barnes and Noble at Tanglewood.

Dr. Mona Sadek wrote a book about her experience from her birth in war torn Nicosia, Cyprus, to her life now with her two sons and husband in the Roanoke Valley. It's called "From Kittens To Babies, The Long Journey Home," and she will have a book signing at the Tanglewood Barnes & Noble at 5 p.m. Nov. 20 with the Grandin Book Fair.

Sadek is a local OB/GYN physician who works at Western Virginia OB/GYN Center and delivers at Lewis-Gale Medical Center.

Born in Cyprus, in the Mediterranean, Sadek grew up loving animals, especially kittens.

"When I was young we had kittens. You didn't buy them, you just picked them up off the street and I remember watching one of our cats have kittens. And that is what led me to want to be an obstetrician," she said.

"I knew I always wanted to go into medicine," she said.

She was given the choice to go to medical school in London or America and so she chose America.

She attended the University of Florida and then went to Vanderbilt for medical school on a full scholarship.

After college she ended up in Baltimore for her residency and was set up on a blind date with a man that became her husband. He isdoctor and an author as well, Dr. Roy Habib.

When he got a job working at Alleghany Medical, Sadek was fortunate to end up in Roanoke in 1998 when she got a job at Lewis-Gale Clinic. Within three years, she began solo practice and had her two children, Michael, 6, and Daniel, 8.

She has been working at the Western Virginia Center since 2003.

"What led me to writing the book was to write down our legacy," she said.

Sadek wanted her children to know how her and her husband, who is from Lebanon, grew up and the hardships they went through to get to America.

"I experienced the war in Israel and we had bombs going off in my school. That's why when I chose a profession I chose to heal and not hurt. I want my kids to know that life wasn't always easy. It took my 14 years to become a U.S. citizen. It's not an easy thing to do -- if you do it legally."

Her book, "From Kittens to Babies: The Long Journey Home," is about Sadek's life growing up and the process of how she went to school and her entire life.

"I talk a lot about how I feel and how people have different expectations here versus at back home where I grew up. For example, here you share everything with a patient and in other countries you don't. I talk about my feelings on immigration and health care and health care dollars."

"I wanted my boys to have a legacy and be able to know my life and how I got here and I want them to appreciate their heritage and how they got here."

Sadek said that it took her a year and a half to write her book, while also working.

Her book costs $16 and can be purchased through PublishAmerica or at Barnes & Noble at Tanglewood or also on Barnes & Noble's website or Amazon's website.