Some Worthwhile Summer Reading

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Can you recommend a particular author that generally writes good books related to medicine? Likewise, is it really useful to read tons of books related to medicine? Or just a select few? I generally just read random fiction and non-fiction books that intrigue me.
 
Hot Lights Cold Steel is an awesome one, I also just read "Complications A surgeons notes on an Imperfect Science" by Atul Gawande and was pretty entertained.

He was my Commencement speaker! Bit repetitive and overly focused on the details for a speech to a general audience, but I liked his message and I'd definitely like to see what he can do in a full book! I liked his anecdotes quite a bit even though I think they weren't a great fit for the ceremony.

I'm always in the market for new books...I always end up going back to my favorites (Ender's Game and Name of the Wind come to mind), but I went back to reading this semester and blew through a lot of new books and all of my old ones. Now I'm out of ideas. I'll definitely try to cover the ones in this thread, but keep them coming!
 
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Can you recommend a particular author that generally writes good books related to medicine? Likewise, is it really useful to read tons of books related to medicine? Or just a select few? I generally just read random fiction and non-fiction books that intrigue me.

I started with Atul Gawande and branched out from there based on the Amazon "Recommended" and "Other people bought" suggestions.
 
Last summer I saw someone mention "The 48 Laws of Power" on sdn so I picked it up. Helped me get through freshman year!
 
the memoir "an unquiet mind" by kay redfield jamison was unbelievable
 
Of particular interest to African-Americans and those interested in twentieth century American history:

Seeing Patients: Unconscious Bias in Health Care by Augustus A. White, III (more autobiography than anything else by an orthopedic surgeon from Harvard)

The Warmth of Other Suns The Epic Story of the America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson One of the African-Americans featured in this book became a very successful surgeon.


This was a surprisingly good social history. I might check out your other recommendation, thanks!
 
Giving this old thread a little bump to recommend:

"The Cost of Hope" by Amanda Bennett

It is an illness narrative by proxy in that it is a memoir focused on her life with her husband who died of kidney cancer. She is a journalist and editor and so she also reports on the cost of medical care and her interviews, after her husband's death, with the physicians who treated him in a number of different cities. It covers medical uncertainty, reimbursement mechanisms for chemotherapy, randomized clinical trials, drug development and much more. They met while both were working in China so there is some interesting bits about being ex-pats in China, too.
 
Not sure if this was mentioned before but didn't see it in this thread.

I just finished The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls and it was fantastic. While not directly related to medicine it deals with a woman's struggle with her alcoholic father(among other things) so I think it is well worth a read.
 
Currently reading "How Doctors Think" by Jerome Groopman.
Have enjoyed "The Emperor of All Maladies" by Siddhartha Mukherjee.
I strongly recommend the latter. It won a Pulitzer.
 
I'm currently in the middle of Stiff by Mary Roach. Don't know how cliche that is, but in my defense I saw it in the local used bookshop window and bought it without even thinking about my interview.
 
Does anyone know of a good book that discusses current health care/economy issues? I saw at least one mentioned in the first page of this thread, but the book was written in 2007, and I'm hoping to read a more recent one (if there is a good one). I want to be prepared to answer questions regarding problems with health care delivery in my interviews and of course I want to be more well-informed for my own sake. Any suggestions regarding books I could read to learn more?
 
Does anyone know of a good book that discusses current health care/economy issues? I saw at least one mentioned in the first page of this thread, but the book was written in 2007, and I'm hoping to read a more recent one (if there is a good one). I want to be prepared to answer questions regarding problems with health care delivery in my interviews and of course I want to be more well-informed for my own sake. Any suggestions regarding books I could read to learn more?

I'm guessing you won't want me to suggest my Health Systems Admin textbook...

I would recommend these documentaries though: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundamerica/view/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundtheworld/view/

At least to get started those are nice....
 
I'm guessing you won't want me to suggest my Health Systems Admin textbook...

I would recommend these documentaries though: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundamerica/view/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickaroundtheworld/view/

At least to get started those are nice....

Thanks! I'll definitely watch these 2 documentaries!

What is the name of the textbook? I might be interested in going through it to learn something new. If anyone also knows of a book about health care that is not a textbook, please let me know. Thanks!
 
Does anyone know of a good book that discusses current health care/economy issues? I saw at least one mentioned in the first page of this thread, but the book was written in 2007, and I'm hoping to read a more recent one (if there is a good one). I want to be prepared to answer questions regarding problems with health care delivery in my interviews and of course I want to be more well-informed for my own sake. Any suggestions regarding books I could read to learn more?

Read "The Cost of Hope". It is a quick read and anecdotal but it tells so much about US health care in story form and will stick with you. And it is written for the layperson who is neither a physician nor an economist.

From there, you can keep up with the Tuesday issues of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal (both cover health issues on Tuesdays) and have some availability online.
 
Read "The Cost of Hope". It is a quick read and anecdotal but it tells so much about US health care in story form and will stick with you. And it is written for the layperson who is neither a physician nor an economist.

From there, you can keep up with the Tuesday issues of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal (both cover health issues on Tuesdays) and have some availability online.

Thank you so much! Bought the book on Amazon and can't wait to read it.
 
I really want to read 'The God Delusion' by Richard Dawkins but won't have time until the summer. If I am asked at interviews (if I get any, that is) about books I read lately, would this be a bad thing, as the book is religious based and I know it can be a touchy subject to talk about it? The thing is, I love reading about religion as it has always been interesting to me (the whole battle between science and religion).
This entire book has been torn apart by various apologists.

Ravi Zacharias'- The End of Reason: A Response to the New Atheists is a response to the God delusion book very well done and very quick read. Not very difficult to refute dawkin's claims.

Dawkins didn't even stand a chance in the debate following this book with John Lennox from Oxford.
 
Thanks for starting this thread LizzyM!

Can anyone recommend any books for a young hispanic male interested in primary care.
So not just casual reads but interesting, informative reads that deal with primary care and healthcare reform today. i see the cost of hope posted above. Have to pick that one up now.

(basically anything that someone interested in primary care should definitely read)
(and also if there are solid books written by latino M.D.'s or about the culture)

Anything that would be helpful for interviews!!!
 
Intern by Sandeep Jauhar.

The book gives a great recanting of a doctors struggles to and through internship involving changing degrees, relationships and demanding attendings
 
Hey everyone. It's been almost a year since anyone posted on this thread. I'm working my way through some of the earlier suggestions (and loving them!), but if anyone has read any good books lately, please share!
 
The Calling, by Blair Grubb MD

These stories deal with the uniquely intimate relationship between patients and their physicians. It is a relationship based on the patient's history, secrets and deepest fears, but also those of his or her doctor. In these touching essays, Dr. Grubb recounts stories that have stayed with him, influenced him as a physician and touched him as a person. He depicts memorable encounters he has had in his calling as he strives to be a good healer and a good human being.

Paperback Version (See reviews)

Kindle Version (See reviews)
 
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman is a good book that details the cultural barriers that physicians may encounter. Well-written though Fadiman begins to repeat herself later in the book.

Yes, and yes, and yes.
 
This entire book has been torn apart by various apologists.

Ravi Zacharias'- The End of Reason: A Response to the New Atheists is a response to the God delusion book very well done and very quick read. Not very difficult to refute dawkin's claims.

Dawkins didn't even stand a chance in the debate following this book with John Lennox from Oxford.
just finished the God Delusion a couple of days ago. i'm admittedly biased against Dawkins, but i don't see how anyone could fair-mindedly read that book and come to the same conclusions he does.

starting Godel, Escher, Bach now. what a complicated book.
 
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot (non-fiction)

Tinkers by Paul Harding (fiction)

Tinkers is the only book from Bellevue Literary Press that I have read but many of its other books look promising: http://blpress.org/books/

I read immortal life for a research ethics class and absolutely loved it, great story elegantly told.

The Undead by Dick Teresi started out really good with a history of death determination but got increasingly opinionated as the book went on. A good read but can't say I agree with the position of the author and didn't like that he presents it as journalism rather than opinion.

I'll put Tinkers on my list.
 
Also not related to medicine, but Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell is a book I just finished reading and it's really really good.
 
For all MD-PhD's I think "Uncle Tungsten" by Oliver Sacks is a really great read. While it is often overlooked in favor of his more medicine related books about neurology and the human mind this book really takes you back to the day when to be a physician was to be a scientist.

I have also heard excellent things about his book on music and the mind.
 
Has anyone read The Emperor of all Maladies? I'm thinking about reading it but I want to know if it's a good read first :meanie:
 
I can't stop reading A Song of Fire and Ice by George R.R. Martin. It pretty much put every other book on hold since it's such a long series. I just started the third book, and so I also spend a lot of time dodging spoilers from those watching the show.

The last few books I read were all of the Hitchhiker's Guide books, A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bryson, The Fabric of the Cosmos by Greene, and the Millennium trilogy. Enjoyed them all, but Greene took some concentration.

On the medical side of things, in the past I've read When the Air Hits Your Brain by Frank Vertosick, and Just Here Trying to Save a Few Lives by Pamela Grim. The latter was okay. Somewhat medically related is An Unquiet Mind by Kay Jamison, and Beautiful Boy by David Sheff. Both were awesome, documenting psychiatric illness (Jamison), and addiction (Sheff).

Can anyone tell me what the connection between Harry Potter and VCU is? A couple of people mentioned the book being mentioned during their interviews...
 
I can't stop reading A Song of Fire and Ice by George R.R. Martin. It pretty much put every other book on hold since it's such a long series. I just started the third book, and so I also spend a lot of time dodging spoilers from those watching the show.

The last few books I read were all of the Hitchhiker's Guide books, A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bryson, The Fabric of the Cosmos by Greene, and the Millennium trilogy. Enjoyed them all, but Greene took some concentration.

On the medical side of things, in the past I've read When the Air Hits Your Brain by Frank Vertosick, and Just Here Trying to Save a Few Lives by Pamela Grim. The latter was okay. Somewhat medically related is An Unquiet Mind by Kay Jamison, and Beautiful Boy by David Sheff. Both were awesome, documenting psychiatric illness (Jamison), and addiction (Sheff).

Can anyone tell me what the connection between Harry Potter and VCU is? A couple of people mentioned the book being mentioned during their interviews...

you're in for a treat
 
I skimmed the thread, sorry if these books have already been mentioned:

I've read these in the past and thoroughly enjoyed them.

Viktor Frankl - Man's Search for Meaning
Daniel J. Baxter - The Least of these My Brethren: A Doctor's Story of Hope and Miracles in an Inner-City AIDS Ward
Daniel Gilbert - Stumbling on Happiness
 
I skimmed the thread, sorry if these books have already been mentioned:

I've read these in the past and thoroughly enjoyed them.

Viktor Frankl - Man's Search for Meaning
Daniel J. Baxter - The Least of these My Brethren: A Doctor's Story of Hope and Miracles in an Inner-City AIDS Ward
Daniel Gilbert - Stumbling on Happiness

Thanks for the reminder of "Stumbling on Happiness". That's on my shelf.
 
I skimmed the thread, sorry if these books have already been mentioned:

I've read these in the past and thoroughly enjoyed them.

Viktor Frankl - Man's Search for Meaning
Daniel J. Baxter - The Least of these My Brethren: A Doctor's Story of Hope and Miracles in an Inner-City AIDS Ward
Daniel Gilbert - Stumbling on Happiness

Man's Search for Meaning changed my life.
 
I'm reading Bad Science by Ben Goldacre. It talks about a lot of pseudo-science fads like homeopathy and what not. Pretty quick and easy.
 
I highly recommend the new book God's Hotel, by Victoria Sweet, MD (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/29/health/29zuger.html?_r=0). She has spent much of her career working at Laguna Honda Hospital, San Francisco's last almshouse. She details how the hospital has changed over time and politely calls into question the balance of bureaucracy and medicine in a modern hospital. Her book makes the case for what she's calling "Slow Medicine:" doctors taking time to really care for their patients and also allowing space for the sometimes slow pace of healing. There are too many important themes in this book to mention here!

I found it a great read; one of those books that really reminds me why I want to be a doctor.
 
Dawkins didn't even stand a chance in the debate following this book with John Lennox from Oxford.

It's interesting that you think Dawkins didn't stand a chance in his debate with Lennox. I thought Dawkins destroyed him, to the point where I almost felt embarrassed for Lennox. Most of his arguments were essentially "I don't understand this, therefore God did it".

To provide another opinion to this thread, I thought The God Delusion was a fantastic book. Definitely worth the read in my opinion.
 
It's interesting that you think Dawkins didn't stand a chance in his debate with Lennox. I thought Dawkins destroyed him, to the point where I almost felt embarrassed for Lennox. Most of his arguments were essentially "I don't understand this, therefore God did it".

To provide another opinion to this thread, I thought The God Delusion was a fantastic book. Definitely worth the read in my opinion.
the main problem i found with it was its dismissive tone, which makes it hard to take it seriously. his thesis was all religion is bad and evil, and atheism is the only viable and reasonable "belief" (for those who haven't read it, i'm not exaggerating his views). for someone who eschews fundamentalism, it seems like he's quite the fundamentalist atheist.

it would've been better if his arguments actually matched the level of his claims, but they don't. for example, he admits that there is no equivalent to evolution in theoretical physics, yet he doesn't admit that his conclusions overreach - essentially, he says "i don't understand this [idea of the finely-tuned universe] yet, but science will eventually prove me right." very similar to the type of thinking as stated above.

i also found him to:
1.) mischaracterize his opponents' positions, or at least simplifies away any nuance. not all christians are right-wing radicals, and not all muslims are extremists either.
2.) be extremely biased, even to fellow atheists. he sings the praises of EO Wilson ("celebrated Harvard biologist") because Wilson agrees with him, but has no such adjectives for Stephen Jay Gould (another atheist) who doesn't fully agree with him, and actually calls Gould a bully.
3.) not once did he mention anything good that religion has done. no mention of the abolitionist movement, anti-eugenics, Bonhoeffer's resistance against Hitler, roots of non-violence, civil rights, modern-day efforts against sexual slavery, etc. it's fine if he believes those things aren't valid or aren't religious in origin, but he doesn't even bring it up, which is just bad scholarship.

-my 2¢
 
This entire book has been torn apart by various apologists.

Ravi Zacharias'- The End of Reason: A Response to the New Atheists is a response to the God delusion book very well done and very quick read. Not very difficult to refute dawkin's claims.

Dawkins didn't even stand a chance in the debate following this book with John Lennox from Oxford.

Lol, does this really have anything to do with medicine? Im sure there are plenty of doctors that are religious and plenty of doctors that are atheist.
 
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot (non-fiction)

Tinkers by Paul Harding (fiction)

Tinkers is the only book from Bellevue Literary Press that I have read but many of its other books look promising: http://blpress.org/books/

I can attest to the greatness that is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Such a sad story to be honest, but greatly told.
 
I have recently been on a Hemingway tear. Some people don't care for his work, but with every one of his novels I read I become a bigger and bigger fan.I'm also intrigued by his own life story (Did you know the Dos Equis "Most Interesting Man in the World" is based off of him?!") but thats another story.

I really enjoyed For Whom the Bell Tolls.
I love Hemingway's take on the mentality of doing a task that you know may be futile because you are bound by a sense of duty and honor to a greater cause and the main character dealing with a rapidly approaching mortality.

But my all time favorite book of his is The Old Man and The Sea. I think everyone can relate to the internal struggle that a person feels in dealing with tough situations. Also I feel the book shows the value of a moral victory and that a personal triumph is better than any physical reward.
 
I few days ago I went through and started picking titles out of this thread that I thought I might read. This is not comprehensive, as I left off most of the books I've read already, as well as some I didn't think I would get around to reading. Still if you would like a compiled list of most of the titles in this thread, here's a good start:

LizzyM recommended, nonfiction:
Forgive and Remember Managing Medical Failure*by Charles L. Bosk. It is an oldie but very good, a sociologist's field report of a year (or so) following surgical teams. Very readable.
The Lazarus Case Life and Death Issues in Neonatal Intensive Care*by John D. Lantos, MD.*
Letters to a Young Doctor*by Richard Selzer, MD (his other books of essays & short stories are good, too)
America's Forgotten Pandemic: The Influenza of 1918*by Alfred W. Crosby
The Body Hunters: Testing New Drugs on the World's Poorest Patients*by Sonia Shah
Death Foretold by Nicholas A. Christakis
Knife Man by Wendy Moore
The Emperor of All Maladies*by Siddhartha Mukherjee
Seeing Patients: Unconscious Bias in Health Care*by Augustus A. White, III*
"The Cost of Hope" by Amanda Bennett
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Stumbling on Happiness, Daniel Gilbert

LizzyM recommended, fiction:
Blindness by Jose Saramago
The Unit by Ninni Holmqvist
Tinkers by Paul Harding*

others recommend, medical related:
Mountains beyond mountains, tracy kidder
The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of Balance, laurie garrett
When the Air hits your brain
A Not Entirely Benign Procedure by Perri Klass
Delivering Doctor Amelia*by Dan Shapiro
Healing the Wounds*by David Hilfiker(lizzym endorsement too)
spirit catches you and you fall down, anne fadiman
Second Opinions by Jerome Groopman
My Own Country: A Doctor's Story, Abraham Verghese
The Tennis Partner, Abraham Verghese
And the Band Played On by Randy Shilts
The Last Lecture*by Randy Pausch
The Calling, by Blair Grubb MD
Out of Poverty -Paul Polak
The Healing of America -T.R. Reid*
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers*by Mary Roach*
"The Ghost Map" by steven johnson
The Least of these My Brethren: A Doctor's Story of Hope and Miracles in an Inner-City AIDS Ward, Daniel Baxter

fiction:
House of God
A Case of Need: A Novel, Michael Crichton
Travels, Michael Crichton
Five Patients, Michael Crichton
Doctors, Erich Segal
The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
jonathan livingston seagull, bach, richard bach

non-medical:
Late Night Thoughts While Listening to Mahler's Ninth Symphony
Biophilia*by Edward O. Wilson
The Third Chimpanzee -Jared Diamond
The Glass Castle*by Jeannette Walls*
Man's Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl
No Time to Lose: A Life in Pursuit of Deadly Viruses*by Piot, Peter
Surely, You're Joking Mr. Feynman
The Warmth of Other Suns The Epic Story of the America's Great Migration*by Isabel Wilkerson
 
If any of you are interested in reading a good medical history book about the lives of Sigmund Freud and William Halstead (the famous surgeon) and how they were impacted by cocaine addiction, then check out:

An Anatomy of Addiction: Sigmund Freud, William Halsted, and the Miracle Drug, Cocaine

By: Howard Markel
 
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