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Petra X's Reviews > 34 Patients: What Becoming a Doctor Taught Me About Health, Hope and Humanity
34 Patients: What Becoming a Doctor Taught Me About Health, Hope and Humanity
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"Nancy was lonely and wanted to be in hospital. And the virus, which trails a pandemic of loneliness in its wake but is always keen to meet new people, was waiting there with open arms." The writing is a pleasure in itself. I would read anything by this author. I've just finished it. My eyes prickled with tears, it's one of the most perfect endings of a book I have ever read. RTC
The title exactly describes the book. It's very profound. This is not a book about cases, it's about people who suffered terribly from ailments. Sometimes there is no resolution to either the ailment or the patient's predicament.
The writing is beautiful. I don't like lyrical writing generally, and this book has very little indeed, but when it does have, it is short, perfectly placed and illuminating. I didn't want this book to end. I didn't want to have read it, so I could read it fresh all over again. With age I keep forgetting books and starting them again only to realise that I've read it. If this happens with this book, I hope I don't remember.
The title exactly describes the book. It's very profound. This is not a book about cases, it's about people who suffered terribly from ailments. Sometimes there is no resolution to either the ailment or the patient's predicament.
The writing is beautiful. I don't like lyrical writing generally, and this book has very little indeed, but when it does have, it is short, perfectly placed and illuminating. I didn't want this book to end. I didn't want to have read it, so I could read it fresh all over again. With age I keep forgetting books and starting them again only to realise that I've read it. If this happens with this book, I hope I don't remember.
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34 Patients.
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Reading Progress
May 14, 2022
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Started Reading
May 14, 2022
– Shelved
December 14, 2022
– Shelved as:
2022-read
December 14, 2022
– Shelved as:
2022-reviews
December 14, 2022
– Shelved as:
medicine-science
December 14, 2022
– Shelved as:
reviewed
December 14, 2022
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Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-41 of 41 (41 new)
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message 1:
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Caroline
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rated it 5 stars
May 16, 2022 02:38PM
Just checked - my library has it. Will definitely go on my t.r. list there. Thank you!
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Caroline wrote: "Just checked - my library has it. Will definitely go on my t.r. list there. Thank you!"The writing of this book is fantastic. It's a 5 star book but 10 star writing. I wish the author's other book Birdie: Mother of 850. by Tom Templeton was more easily available or an ebook.
Thank you Petra! This book was truly amazing. You find the best ones. Most of my reading list comes from you.
Alexia wrote: "Thank you Petra! This book was truly amazing. You find the best ones. Most of my reading list comes from you."Wow, what a compliment. Thank you! This is a lovely book and I should write a proper review of it. I do have a 'secret source' being a bookseller. At the moment I am knocked out by Duped: Why Innocent People Confess - And Why We Believe Their Confessions and am raving about it to everyone in my bookshop. Best book of the year.
What a positive review, I put this on my TBR list!
Renee wrote: "What a positive review, I put this on my TBR list!"I hope you get round to it, it's a very enjoyable read.
What i really appreciate about your reading habits is that you find hidden gems -books that very few people found and rated. I prefer that to the main stream that everybody read! Much more interesting...
Alexia wrote: "What i really appreciate about your reading habits is that you find hidden gems -books that very few people found.."It is tied up with the bookshop. Having an indie bookshop I compete with Amazon which shows you unusual books only if you know what you are looking for, and Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ which gets a lot of money for promoting newsletter books, 'best books of summer', new books, 'books people like' etc etc. I've always wondered about how the Best Books of the Year have been selected... So indie bookshops do their best to find the unusual you wouldn't come across, and indie bookshop owners enjoy these books and presenting them to people, GR is an extension of that to me.
So true! I'm really sick of these best books sections on GR and Amazon promotions! Most of the time they are so cliché and banal... Only the authors that managed at least one best selling book get a spot in the light... And all the promotion involves money which many aspiring good writers don't have. Another issue for me is the poor quality and volume of translation to Hebrew, as i live in Israel. So i mostly read in English these days and thank Amazon and Book Depository...
Israel btw since Corona is mostly into translating self help books on self improvement and career... Almost no translates of scientific books! I also read in Russian but since the war is hard and also undesirable to order from there. We came from Ukraine, you see...Strange times all over. Lucky i improved my English reading in recent years. Without it i would've been stuck here!
Alexia wrote: "I also read in Russian but since the war is hard and also undesirable to order from there. We came from Ukraine, you see......"Do you have relatives still there? If so I hope they are safe.
I have some but we lost touch years ago as they opposed to Israel Alliyah idea. .. Poor people. They are in the middle of the fights now ..1
Alexia wrote: "I have some but we lost touch years ago as they opposed to Israel Alliyah idea. .. Poor people. They are in the middle of the fights now ..1"I'm sorry for them too, what a situation to be in.
I'm so glad I follow you, Petra. Just as Alexia, I'm often inspired by your reviews, and so far the books you recommend haven't disappointed me!
I also am glad to follow Petra X. Interesting thoughts spanning books and people. Interesting comments.
Andrea wrote: "I'm so glad I follow you, Petra. Just as Alexia, I'm often inspired by your reviews, and so far the books you recommend haven't disappointed me!"Thank you, I wish you lived nearer, you might like my bookshop too.
I'm sure I would, and I'm sure I could just sign over my house to you the first day. XD
Andrea wrote: "I'm sure I would, and I'm sure I could just sign over my house to you the first day. XD"Just the bookshelves will do!
Haha. On the contrary! I'd need the bookshelves to put all the books I'd buy. But another subject: what do the RL and GR in your current name mean?
RL=Real life and GR=Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ
Gotcha! Thanks 😊
Of course, it may be that all is maya
This will make a good Christmas gift. Thank you.
John of Canada wrote: "This will make a good Christmas gift. Thank you."For you or from you?
From me. And for me.
John of Canada wrote: "From me. And for me."Gift yourself! Wrap it up nicely and put it under the tree then you know you have at least one perfect present.
Thank you. You are the best Christmas elf ever!
John of Canada wrote: "Thank you. You are the best Christmas elf ever!"You are funny. I think you deserve a box of chocolate pretzels are a bottle of limoncello to go with your book!
Thank you again. I will be checking under the tree in ten days. By the way, I make the best pretzel, Hershey's kisses, and m&m treats ever and I have an Italian sommelier friend who has a great recipe for limoncello. Come on up to Calgary and we'll set you up. : )
John of Canada wrote: "Thank you again. I will be checking under the tree in ten days. By the way, I make the best pretzel, Hershey's kisses, and m&m treats ever and I have an Italian sommelier friend who has a great rec..."If you also had tropical weather I'd be rounding up the reindeers already.
Christmas wish list: Tropical weather. I also have a terrific recipe for reindeer steaks with a port reduction.
John of Canada wrote: "Christmas wish list: Tropical weather. I also have a terrific recipe for reindeer steaks with a port reduction."It's tropical weather on the island, but not where I live in the rainforest on mountain. It was down to 68 the other night. My Christmas lunch is going to be brown rice with Brussels sprouts, black beans, lentils and chestnuts followed by Ben & Jerry's Rocky Road. The reindeers and Santa are bringing it to me, so lay off the reindeer steak thing, ok??? :-)
The forecast for Calgary next week is a low of of -32 celsius. Humbug! I now have to find a reindeer coat. Or a moose so that Santa can bring you your traditional non-reindeer meal.
I would eat r**nd**r meat, but don't tell them!
Rudolph is lucky because he won't be joining any reindeer GAME !
John of Canada wrote: "Rudolph is lucky because he won't be joining any reindeer GAME !"No indeed. He's the Peter Pan of reindeer and far too tough by now.
But Peter Pan is still a boy so wouldn't Rudolph still be a fawn by your logic? You need to pay more attention to the facts, Petra.
John of Canada wrote: "But Peter Pan is still a boy so wouldn't Rudolph still be a fawn by your logic? You need to pay more attention to the facts, Petra."What logic? :-D
Oh yeah. You got me. :-) OH! It's maple syrup day. How are you celebrating it?
Wtf is Maple Syrup Day? You all buy Log Cabin and pour it over your Eggo pancakes? :-D (I'm so cruel).
Why is that cruel? That's exactly how we celebrate it. If we're in Quebec, we go to a festival and make maple sugar candy. It's kinda fun, except there are too many frenchmen.
