James Nestor — Breath (Book Review)
James Nestor combines scientific exploration and his own experiences in Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art. The two aspects keep the book from being entirely memoir or entirely an academic treatise. At its heart, Nestor asks why breath matters. We breathe...Dr. Jen Gunther, MD — The Menopause Manifesto (Book Review)
Dr. Jen Gunther, MD is my new chief explainer of women’s health. Her upcoming book, The Menopause Manifesto: Own Your Health with Facts and Feminism is brilliant. It’s an utterly necessary addition to every 35+ woman’s bookshelf. Run, don’t walk, to your nearest...The Red Lotus: A Prescient Mystery for 2020 from Chris Bohjalian (Book Review)
The Red Lotus is another strong entry in the mystery / thriller genre from Chris Bohjalian. And this time, he chose an oddly prescient topic for a 2020 release. The story centers around Alexis Remnick, a New York City ER doctor. She’s on a bicycling trip to Vietnam...Mona Hanna-Attisha Fights for the Children in What the Eyes Don’t See (Book Review)
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha wrote What the Eyes Don’t See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City to tell what happened in Flint, Michigan. But it’s not just her story. It’s the story of her clinic, her city, her state, and her country. And they are...Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything by Lydia Kang, MD and Nate Pedersen (Book Review)
Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything by Lydia Kang and Nate Pedersen is two parts gasping at astounding purported medical cures. It’s also one part rubbernecker can’t look away no matter how yucky the example might be. I thoroughly enjoyed...Our Malady by Timothy Snyder—Healthcare, Freedom & Politics (Book Review)
Our Malady: Lessons in Liberty from a Hospital Diary by Timothy Snyder is just under 200 pages. While it’s not long, it covers topics we all face daily whether we know it or not—our health and freedom. A Yale professor, historian, and writer, Snyder was not well at...Book Review: Pale Rider by Laura Spinney
Laura Spinney covers a tremendous amount of ground with her excellent book, Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How it Changed the World. It’s a timely read for 2020, of course. And Spinney talks about everything from how the flu started and traveled, to how it...Book Review: Attention, A Love Story by Casey Schwartz
Casey Schwartz writes a memoir and social history mash up in Attention, A Love Story. She’s a thirty-something woman who started using Adderal, a drug to treat ADHD, in college. But she took it without being diagnosed. It’s just one of those things college kids do,...Book Review: Dopesick by Beth Macy
Beth Macy tells hard truths in her 2018 book, Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America. To me, it’s about the way capitalism allows one group of people to harm another, all in pursuit of the almighty dollar and in the guise of treating a...Book Review: Doing Harm by Maya Dusenberry
Maya Dusenberry compiles and analyzes a boat load of important information in Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed, and Sick. Now you know her theme—the way women suffer because of misogyny and prejudicial...Book Review: The Angel and the Assassin by Donna Jackson Nakazawa
Donna Jackson Nakazawa is a favorite nonfiction author of mine. Her book, The Autoimmune Epidemic was one of the first books I read after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis 10 years ago. And I’ve devoured every one she’s written since. The Angel and the...Book Review: Over-Diagnosed by H. Gilbert Welch, M.D.
Over-Diagnosed: Making People Sick in the Pursuit of Health is a physician researchers’ perspective on the state of medical practice in the United States. It was published in 2011, so some of the information is dated. But the fundamental questions raised by H....Book Review: One Doctor by Brendan Reilly
Dr. Brendan Reilly creates a gripping memoir, One Doctor, by balancing several elements. As a hospitalist, a doctor working strictly with patients admitted to hospital, he details individual cases. At the same time, he reflects on how the cases affect him beyond the...Book Review: Cancerland: A Medical Memoir by David Scadden, M.D.
David Scadden, M.D. titled his book Cancerland: A Medical Memoir. Truthfully, it’s more of a scientific history book. There’s very little in it that constitutes memoir, in the sense of personal experiences. He does tell a bit of his mother’s cancer story, and some...Graphic Novel Review: Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371 by M.K. Czerwiec
Taking Turns is a memoir in graphic novel format from MK Czerwiec. She was one of the nurses caring for HIV / AIDS patients at Chicago’s Illinois Masonic Medical Center in the 1980s and 1990s. I found this book on Hoopla after reading The Great Believers. Rebecca...Bookshop.Org Affiliate
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I will definitely recommend Kick Pain in the Kitchen to my patients: Those who are looking to avoid pharmaceutical treatment and those who want to combine western medicine with alternative therapies.
Jane A. Swartz
ARNP, MSN, Rheumatology Nurse Practitioner
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