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Mr. Humble & Dr. Butcher
In The Butchering Art historian Lindsey Fitzharris wrote about Joseph Lister, the surgeon we need to thank for antiseptic practices used in contemporary surgical practices. Lister transformed Victorian Medicine and likely paved the way for Dr Robert White to embark on the exploration described in Mr Humble & Dr Butcher: A Monkey’s Head, the Pope’s…
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All that was not her
All that was not her by anthropologist Todd Meyers is unlike any other ethnographic account I have ever read. The text provides a wonderful blend of creative and poetic writing. The writing is playful yet thought-provoking, akin thoughts written out in fieldnotes. The fragmented writing style underscores the notion that researchers never really fully understand…
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The Butchering Art
The history of medicine is fascinating. Theories and ideas that are currently accepted, or even taken for granted, can take a long time to become mainstream, or even accepted. The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine by Lindsey Fitzharris provides an insightful account into the history of infection,…
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The Owl At the Window
Happy 2023 everyone! I started this year off strong with the flu, which knocked me out (or at least my reading and writing abilities) for a good couple of weeks. But here we are, first review of the new year! The Owl at the Window: a memoir of loss and hope by Carl Gorham is…
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Stronger: Changing Everything I Knew About Women’s Strength
I recently read Poorna Bell’s Stronger: Changing everything I knew about women’s strength. The majority of this book is not about death or grief, but about strength. The power of women. The physical power of women and how culturally it is often expected for women to be petite, dainty, or weak. Yet, women have great…
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Half Woman, Half Grief
Mother figures are important in people’s lives. They contribute to people’s sense of security and safety. Losing a mother, therefore, can be a rupture in this sense of security, and alter the course of life’s trajectory. Mothers help shape who you are as an individual, and nudge you towards potential futures. Maya Kalaria’s poetry collection…