Before starting medical school...

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guitarguy23 said:
...Any good (non-study) books I should read before I have "no life"?
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Watch the documentary "Doctor's Diaries".

Read:

"Cutting For Stone"
Atul Gawande's "Complications" and "Better"
Groopman's "How Doctor's Think"
"Mountains Beyond Mountains"

Enjoy!
 
I second Mountains Beyond Mountains and Better. Really, you should just read as much as possible.
 
sam500 said:
Watch the documentary "Doctor's Diaries".

Read:

"Cutting For Stone"
Atul Gawande's "Complications" and "Better"
Groopman's "How Doctor's Think"
"Mountains Beyond Mountains"

Enjoy!
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I +1 all these books. Complications and better literally took a day each to read and although a little slower, cutting for stone is really an inspiring story.
 
guitarguy23 said:
...Any good (non-study) books I should read before I have "no life"?
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I just finished "Something for the Pain: Compassion and Burnout in the ER" by Paul Austin. It was a great book, easy read and opens your eyes to the life of an ED physician. I would say it has an overall negative tone regarding patients/the ED but it's good. It's about 250 pages and I finished it in two evenings.

At the moment, I'm about 3/4 of the way through "The House of God" by Samuel Shem. It's....interesting to say the least. I'm not sure how I feel about it anymore but I'm just going to finish it. It's an outrageous book but offers interesting insight regarding residency. It's fiction but I've seen it discussed on SDN before and I think it is largely autobiographical as well.

Definitely watch "Doctor's Diaries" as well. It's on Netflix.
 
I've heard Clinical Microbiology Made Ridiculously Simple's a good read :meanie:

jk Ender's Game; Brave New World
 
Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones series) is great until you have to muddle through book 4...
 
enjoy life!

but buy first aid AND kaplan medessentials, so that you can use it alongside your 1st year material. it will prove to be an invaluable resource and you will be very thankful when it comes time to study for the boards, if you have been looking at them since day `1 of med school.

My step 1 score performance, I largely attribute to buying kaplan medessentials and first aid and reading it alongside my courses first 2 years. so when it came time to study for the boards, everything I recognized instantly in the books and that in itself took me far less time memorizing the two books in and out, and then was able to get through 2 qbanks easily with ample time while others were spending time looking at first aid for the first time and going through uworld with difficulty.

but until school starts relax. just wanted to give a suggestion that it would be a beneficial investment in buying a first aid and kaplan medessentials book this summer.
 
dr zaius said:
Game of Thrones.
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601007_468304483199010_663910773_n.jpg
 
Thanks everyone for the responses! I have heard good things about Game of Thrones-both the books and the show-so I may get the first book and try it.

san2 said:
enjoy life!

but buy first aid AND kaplan medessentials, so that you can use it alongside your 1st year material. it will prove to be an invaluable resource and you will be very thankful when it comes time to study for the boards, if you have been looking at them since day `1 of med school.

My step 1 score performance, I largely attribute to buying kaplan medessentials and first aid and reading it alongside my courses first 2 years. so when it came time to study for the boards, everything I recognized instantly in the books and that in itself took me far less time memorizing the two books in and out, and then was able to get through 2 qbanks easily with ample time while others were spending time looking at first aid for the first time and going through uworld with difficulty.

but until school starts relax. just wanted to give a suggestion that it would be a beneficial investment in buying a first aid and kaplan medessentials book this summer.
Click to expand...

I have heard that getting some Step 1 materials and following along with course material is not a bad idea. Any other materials I should pick up and "peruse" while studying from day 1 of M1?

Thanks for the great responses everyone!
 
I second "Cutting for Stone." It's such a wonderful read... I got quite emotional towards the end of the book. Btw, it's slow at first but it picks up in pace towards the middle.
 
annabanana1690 said:
Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones series) is great until you have to muddle through book 4...
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truth, it wore me out. i'm in book 5 and as much as i love the series, i'm ready to be done
 
Slev said:
truth, it wore me out. i'm in book 5 and as much as i love the series, i'm ready to be done
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Power through it. ADwD was an amazing read.

OP, if you start A Song of Ice and Fire plan to finish it before school starts. It will literally consume all your waking hours.
 
pinacolada said:
I second "Cutting for Stone." It's such a wonderful read... I got quite emotional towards the end of the book. Btw, it's slow at first but it picks up in pace towards the middle.
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I hated it - I got like 150-200pgs in and had to quit. It was so slow
 
Slev said:
truth, it wore me out. i'm in book 5 and as much as i love the series, i'm ready to be done
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I agree. I took a break after Storm of Swords and can't muster up enough motivation to get through Dance with Dragons. As much as I Love them, it's a chore to plug straight through them. We are talking about thousands of pages.
 
MrTambourineMan said:
I agree. I took a break after Storm of Swords and can't muster up enough motivation to get through Dance with Dragons. As much as I Love them, it's a chore to plug straight through them. We are talking about thousands of pages.
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I thought the fifth book was better than the fourth and the second and third were the best of all.
 
Monday Mornings by Sanjay Gupta is more of a medical tv drama then it is a real novel, but it is pretty entertaining nonetheless.
 
I am not sure how do to this, but I wish I set this post up for others to list their books and "add" to the list. There are a lot of interesting ones I've never heard of--but I am a HUGE reader and love everything so I will definitely look into these!

Atul Gawande is great; his perspective on where we are with healthcare delivery is spot on, and his storytelling is good too. His articles in The New Yorker are good reads, especially the one concerning the physician's role in end-of-life care. See below, if you haven't read this yet:

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/02/100802fa_fact_gawande

**And apparently he published his commencement address for Williams College in The New Yorker yesterday. 'Bout to read it, I reckon.
 
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Currently, I'm reading And the Band Played On, which is a very detailed narrative of the early days of the AIDS epidemic and the social/political issues involved with it.

In terms of fiction to add, I would say anything by Cormac McCarthy, especially Blood Meridian and The Road.
 
mmmcdowe said:
He still responds to fanmail. I wrote him an email and got a response same day a few months ago. <3 his books were a major part of my childhood, especially ghosts of fear street.
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Are you serious? That's awesome. Those books got me into reading for pleasure. It consumed a ton of my childhood.
 
I'm going old-school with The Wheel of Time - the last book is scheduled to come out in January, so my only hope to reread the series is now before I start the end of July. Started 3 days ago, onto the second book already. Only 11 more to go!
 
D elegans said:
Currently, I'm reading And the Band Played On, which is a very detailed narrative of the early days of the AIDS epidemic and the social/political issues involved with it.

In terms of fiction to add, I would say anything by Cormac McCarthy, especially Blood Meridian and The Road.
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yes Yes YES Cormac McCarthy rocks. Suttree is wild. Blood Meridian is by far his best though. Last I heard there may be a film adaptation in the works. 👍

I need to read And the Band Played On.
 
Snuke said:
I'm going old-school with The Wheel of Time - the last book is scheduled to come out in January, so my only hope to reread the series is now before I start the end of July. Started 3 days ago, onto the second book already. Only 11 more to go!
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I can't wait for the final book!

I started the series in 1995 back when the 6th book had just come out. I thought it was the final one at the time.... 6 books later and one author down and I just can't wait for the end!

Brandon Sanderson has done an awesome job pepping it back up with action. It was starting to lag there book 7 onwards.
 
sam500 said:
I can't wait for the final book!

I started the series in 1995 back when the 6th book had just come out. I thought it was the final one at the time.... 6 books later and one author down and I just can't wait for the end!

Brandon Sanderson has done an awesome job pepping it back up with action. It was starting to lag there book 7 onwards.
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Funny you mention book 7, because that's where I stopped. I'm only picking it back up because Sanderson is my favourite author. If you like Sanderson, read the Mistborn trilogy and The Way of Kings.
 
guitarguy23 said:
yes Yes YES Cormac McCarthy rocks. Suttree is wild. Blood Meridian is by far his best though. Last I heard there may be a film adaptation in the works. 👍

I need to read And the Band Played On.
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I need to read Suttree. In addition to the two I mentioned, I've only read Outer Dark and No Country for Old Men. I got about a third of the way through All the Pretty Horses before I got distracted by other things; I haven't returned to it yet though.

Are there other authors you would recommend for those who like McCarthy? He gets compared to Faulkner, but I haven't delved into his stuff yet.
 
Snuke said:
Funny you mention book 7, because that's where I stopped. I'm only picking it back up because Sanderson is my favourite author. If you like Sanderson, read the Mistborn trilogy and The Way of Kings.
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Have done. Liked mistborn 1 more than 2 & 3. Way of Kings was great, and 9 more books to come if I remember. I was not a fan of Elantris, however.

If you're keen on Sanderson, I'd recommend Rothfuss's "The Name of the Wind" and Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy (my personal favorite).
 
sam500 said:
Have done. Liked mistborn 1 more than 2 & 3. Way of Kings was great, and 9 more books to come if I remember. I was not a fan of Elantris, however.

If you're keen on Sanderson, I'd recommend Rothfuss's "The Name of the Wind" and Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy (my personal favorite).
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Fair statements. 1 was the best, 2 was ok, and I thought the ending of 3 was awesome. Still need to get 'Alloy of Law' but I am waiting for the price to go down. The Way of Kings was amazing, and I can't wait until he finishes the wheel of time so he can go to the cosmere. Elantris was a unique concept executed mediocre. If you're bored, try 'Warbreaker.' It's not as polished as Way, but the magic system is incredibly creative and the plot lines are very well done.

I've already read Rothfuss - the first was excellent, but I thought the second dragged, especially in the middle. And all those pages, and he succeeded in advancing the plot...a year? Half a year? He needs to come out with the last, but with all the information we are missing, I wonder if he's going to do 2 trilogies, or a trilogy of trilogies.

I have seen Abercromie, but I've never picked him up. I might go ahead and spend the B&N giftcard burning a hole in my pocket. Thanks for the recommendation.
 
Snuke said:
Fair statements. 1 was the best, 2 was ok, and I thought the ending of 3 was awesome. Still need to get 'Alloy of Law' but I am waiting for the price to go down. The Way of Kings was amazing, and I can't wait until he finishes the wheel of time so he can go to the cosmere. Elantris was a unique concept executed mediocre. If you're bored, try 'Warbreaker.' It's not as polished as Way, but the magic system is incredibly creative and the plot lines are very well done.

I've already read Rothfuss - the first was excellent, but I thought the second dragged, especially in the middle. And all those pages, and he succeeded in advancing the plot...a year? Half a year? He needs to come out with the last, but with all the information we are missing, I wonder if he's going to do 2 trilogies, or a trilogy of trilogies.

I have seen Abercromie, but I've never picked him up. I might go ahead and spend the B&N giftcard burning a hole in my pocket. Thanks for the recommendation.
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I started Warbreaker, but got sidetracked. I'll give it another go.

I totally agree with you about Rothfuss's second book. I am completely uninterested in the "love story" sub-plot of the book. It's more melodrama than it's worth and just dilutes the plot with so much angst.

Abercrombie's trilogy really impressed me. It's gritty fantasy, which I prefer. There are no black and white characters, only grey. He does an excellent job of character development over the three books. He changes his writing style to reflect which character he's writing about so it really feels like you're "in a different persons head" for each one. I really can't praise those 3 books enough.
 
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