Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
Jonathan Cape (2009), Edition: 2nd prt., 192 pages
Description
"What a terrific book....[Weston] leaves you feeling that if push came to shove you'd want to be operated on by her." --Nicholas Shakespeare, author of Bruce Chatwin: A Biography The continuing popularity of doctor shows on TV--from Scrubs, House, and Grey's Anatomy to the television phenomenon ER--indicates a widespread fascination with all things medical. Direct Red, by practicing ear, nose, and throat surgical specialist Gabriel Weston, takes readers behind the scenes and into the operating room for a fascinating look at what really goes on on the other side of the hospital doors. "A Surgeon's View of her Life-and-Death Profession," Weston's Direct Red is written not only with knowledge and insight, but with compassion, honesty, and literary flair.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member elliepotten
I picked this up on a whim, out of a bag of incoming books at the shop, because I've rather enjoyed other 'medical memoirs' I've read in the past. I find them fascinating, perhaps because the medical profession is such a world apart - men and women caring for every kind of person in every kind of
Weston is a surgeon in a big-city English hospital. Her book is divided into short, deftly-titled chapters, providing themes for her anecdotes and creating an interesting structure. 'Speed', for example, illustrates the importance of quick thinking and rapid action in saving lives; 'Hierarchy' delves into the power relations of a surgical ward, and 'Children' covers her time in the paediatric emergency room and children's department. Theming each section allows Weston to move around in time and to make important points about the surgical profession without muddling her narrative, and it really worked for me.
This is a beautifully written book that rings with the precise and matter-of-fact detail that a surgeon's eye is trained to notice. Weston's disclaimer points out that no one character or situation here is 'true' - but I don't think it really matters, because at the book's heart is a thoroughly authentic and experienced voice. There were some heartbreaking moments and some charming ones, some lyrical descriptions and some blisteringly earthy ones. Far from being frightened by the graphic surgical scenes, I found myself reassured by how much the human body can withstand, and how much a surgical team can do to mend it when it is broken. Highly recommended - though if you're squeamish you should probably give this one a miss!
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difficult situation, often at absolutely critical moments in their lives. Gabriel Weston's surgical memoir is definitely the best of the bunch so far, and I can see why it was longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award in 2009.Weston is a surgeon in a big-city English hospital. Her book is divided into short, deftly-titled chapters, providing themes for her anecdotes and creating an interesting structure. 'Speed', for example, illustrates the importance of quick thinking and rapid action in saving lives; 'Hierarchy' delves into the power relations of a surgical ward, and 'Children' covers her time in the paediatric emergency room and children's department. Theming each section allows Weston to move around in time and to make important points about the surgical profession without muddling her narrative, and it really worked for me.
This is a beautifully written book that rings with the precise and matter-of-fact detail that a surgeon's eye is trained to notice. Weston's disclaimer points out that no one character or situation here is 'true' - but I don't think it really matters, because at the book's heart is a thoroughly authentic and experienced voice. There were some heartbreaking moments and some charming ones, some lyrical descriptions and some blisteringly earthy ones. Far from being frightened by the graphic surgical scenes, I found myself reassured by how much the human body can withstand, and how much a surgical team can do to mend it when it is broken. Highly recommended - though if you're squeamish you should probably give this one a miss!
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LibraryThing member mckait
3.0 out of 5 stars Something of a letdown..., July 26, 2009
By Kathleen Wagner "*Mitakuye Oyasin or We are A... (SWPA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
Reading this book will give you an idea of what a young woman training to be a doctor in England faces. It is clear that bias against woman doctors
This book is a collection of the experiences of a young woman who enters medical school and the situations she faced and how she deals with them. Weston tells of dealing with children, emergencies, death,and more, and her own personal grow as she makes her way through.
The stories are brief and informative. The author mentions that it was her intent to depersonalize the stories in order to honor the privacy of her patients. Some of the experiences she relates are interesting and poignant.
In fact most of them are, yet there is something missing. The approach is matter of fact to the extreme. Some descriptions are somewhat graphic, but no more than need be to get the point across and give an accurate picture of the experience.
To me the most interesting part of this short book deals with Weston's own personal growth. I find it hard to describe exactly what it was that I found lacking, but there was indeed something missing here. Bland is the word I can best use to describe this book. It held my attention long enough to finish reading, but I was not sorry to put it down when I had.
By Kathleen Wagner "*Mitakuye Oyasin or We are A... (SWPA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)
Reading this book will give you an idea of what a young woman training to be a doctor in England faces. It is clear that bias against woman doctors
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has not yet been completely eliminated, especially among older, male doctors.This book is a collection of the experiences of a young woman who enters medical school and the situations she faced and how she deals with them. Weston tells of dealing with children, emergencies, death,and more, and her own personal grow as she makes her way through.
The stories are brief and informative. The author mentions that it was her intent to depersonalize the stories in order to honor the privacy of her patients. Some of the experiences she relates are interesting and poignant.
In fact most of them are, yet there is something missing. The approach is matter of fact to the extreme. Some descriptions are somewhat graphic, but no more than need be to get the point across and give an accurate picture of the experience.
To me the most interesting part of this short book deals with Weston's own personal growth. I find it hard to describe exactly what it was that I found lacking, but there was indeed something missing here. Bland is the word I can best use to describe this book. It held my attention long enough to finish reading, but I was not sorry to put it down when I had.
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LibraryThing member detailmuse
Direct Red is an eminently readable collection of stories drawn from Gabriel Weston’s experiences while training and working as a surgeon in the UK.
The opening page finds her near collapse from exhaustion (and tedium) while in her seventh hour of assisting on an OR case. Desperate to not admit
The book’s description likens Weston to Atul Gawande (Complications, Better), but while they both write patient-centered stories of medicine and surgery, their content and styles differ markedly. Gawande is a master essayist, using the clinical case as a jumping-off point for deep explorations of the science, history and ethics of practice. Weston is a compelling storyteller whose laser-focused patient-doctor vignettes are full of tension, emotion and keen observation.
Despite having spent my career in healthcare, the book surprised and informed me, and I devoured it in a day.
The opening page finds her near collapse from exhaustion (and tedium) while in her seventh hour of assisting on an OR case. Desperate to not admit
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vulnerability in front of her colleagues, she resorts to a private mantra -- recalling the names of tissue stains that fascinated her back in medical school: Methylene blue, Acridine orange, Malachite green, Tyrian purple … Direct red. This list rouses her back to clarity in the OR and launches her series of stories set at other precipices of vulnerability, represented by theme-based chapters: Speed, Sex, Death, Voices, Beauty, Hierarchy, Territory, Emergencies, Ambition, Help, Children, Appearances, Changes, and Home.The book’s description likens Weston to Atul Gawande (Complications, Better), but while they both write patient-centered stories of medicine and surgery, their content and styles differ markedly. Gawande is a master essayist, using the clinical case as a jumping-off point for deep explorations of the science, history and ethics of practice. Weston is a compelling storyteller whose laser-focused patient-doctor vignettes are full of tension, emotion and keen observation.
Despite having spent my career in healthcare, the book surprised and informed me, and I devoured it in a day.
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LibraryThing member cougargirl1967
Very good read.
Awards
Guardian First Book Award (Longlist — 2009)
Ackerley Prize (Winner — 2010)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2009
Physical description
192 p.; 5.39 inches
ISBN
0224084399 / 9780224084390
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DDC/MDS
| 617.092 |