Less Medicine, More Health: 7 Assumptions That Drive Too Much Medical Care by H. Gilbert Welch
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The author of this book is an doctor who is practiced for years as a PCP and now teaches at Dartmouth. One of his areas of expertise is what the data (and these are extensive research studies) about the results of medical screening show and how the screening causes more harm than good. Continue reading
Justinian’s Flea: Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe by William Rosen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book was absolutely fascinating, both from a historical perspective (great depth in the background of Justinian, the empire, and the players in Justinian’s world, which is intriguing) and a scientific/epidemiological perspective. Continue reading
Better: A Surgeon’s Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
After reading
Being Mortal
by Atul Gawande, I added all his books to my to-read list.
Gawande is not only a conscientious physician, but he is also a thoughtful leader (who admits his own shortcomings and failures) and an excellent writer, and that combination is always appealing to me. Continue reading
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
When an English major turned neurosurgeon quotes from The Waste Land liberally and with comprehension (The Waste Land, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, and The Hollow Men are my three favorite T. S. Eliot poems, with The Hollow Men being the closest to my soul) and I see my own connection that seeks deeper understanding that has grown from literature (mind) to neuroscience (the brain), I am immediately drawn more intimately into his story. Continue reading
Solitude: In Pursuit of a Singular Life in a Crowded World by Michael Harris
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
After reading and totally relating to Michael Harris’
The End of Absence: Reclaiming What We’ve Lost in a World of Constant Connection, this book went to the top of my reading list as soon as it was published. Continue reading
Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets by Luke Dittrich
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
In my neurological and neuroscience research and reading over the last several years, Patient H.M. came up frequently, but with very little detail except that his postmortem brain was used to do the most extensive open source brain map to date and that he suffered from profound amnesia. Continue reading
He Wanted the Moon: The Madness and Medical Genius of Dr. Perry Baird, and His Daughter’s Quest to Know Him by Mimi Baird
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book will break your heart in a lot of ways, but I highly recommend it.
Mimi Baird’s father mysteriously disappeared from her life at age 6 without any real explanation from anyone, including her mother, as to why. The oldest of the three Baird children, Mimi had the only vivid memories of her dad, of their connection, and, subsequently, she alone felt and mourned his sudden absence the most. Continue reading
Going Gentle Into That Good Night 