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Search tags: non-fic-heath-and-medical
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review 2016-06-24 02:16
brain surgery is done by humans, not gods
By Henry Marsh Do No Harm - Henry Marsh

Although I was sorry there wasn't a chapter featuring deep brain stimulation, this is the brain surgery book I hoped for!  The memoir isn't particularly well structured and the stories don't always have a well defined arc, but that doesn't matter.  The author is a brain surgeon for god sake, not a Pulitzer winning author.   What is revealed is the challenging world of high risk surgery carry high levels of risk and reward.  Surgeons are notorious for having big egos, and Dr. Henry Marsh is no exception.  His disdain for hospital and healthcare management was as evident as his compassion for his patients.  He candidly talks about his struggles dealing with less than sympathetic patients.  Also, kudos to the best temper tantrum I've seen in a book (following a botched job performed by a trainee).    

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review 2015-08-30 06:54
lots of babies but not one cigar
Call The Midwife: A True Story of the East End in the 1950s - Jennifer Worth

A  midwife's authentic and slightly ethnocentric account of mid-20th century London slums.  While the author is a competent writer, it's not literary, and to me that adds to the charm.   She was a bit patronizing of her patients at times, but she did seem to genuinely care for them.  I really liked learning about this piece of post-war London as it is rarely depicted in books and movies.  Certainly a great book for anyone interested in women's heath in a pre-oral contraceptive era.

There are two more books in this memoir (a memoir trilogy?) and a netflix series to boot.  Potential of midwifery ahead.   Maybe.

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review 2015-07-01 23:23
An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness - Kay Redfield Jamison
A very poignant first hand account of the struggle with bipolar disorder from a clinical psychologist who studies and treats the disorder.
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review 2015-05-21 18:23
everything tastes like chicken because chicken doesn't taste like anything
The Dorito Effect: The Surprising New Truth About Food and Flavor - Mark Schatzker
Opps.   Library book got returned before I could write a review and my bookmarks are lost so I don't have all my bookmarked notes.  Review from memory.
 
The Dorito Effect is an interesting take on food, nutrition and our love of eating things we shouldn't.   The premise that fresh food has been engineered for maximum yield and flavor has been lost.  No controversy there, we all know that those beautiful unblemished red tomatoes tastes like cardboard.   As a result, we add flavors, like that addictive cheesy stuff on Cheetos.   Historically flavor meant nutrition and our inclination seek variety of flavors is beneficial because it led to balanced nutrition.  However, vitamin supplements and flavored foods confuse this flavor/nutrition association.   The good news is that technology got us into this mess, and the author things that technology get us out of this mess.   
 
Audiobook gripe - don't refer to the book as an audiobook!   I don't know who thinks its a good idea, but it sounds really stupid, especially when you refer to the spine of the audiobook.
 
Audiobook narrator comment -  sqeeeee, Adrien English read me this book. 
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text 2015-01-04 17:00
Reading progress update: I've read 35%.
The Orgasm Bible: The Latest Research and Techniques for Reaching More Powerful Climaxes More Often - Susan Crain Bakos

Reading like a long Cosmopolitan article.  I was hoping for more science.  The photos are pretty funny. 

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