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(I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.)
Published: 2012
It's about: This a collection of (you guessed it!) True Medical Detective Stories. They are compiled and told by Dr. Meador, a physician and author with over fifty years of experience practicing and teaching medicine. In this most recent book, he shares nineteen perplexing cases in which some one- a doctor, researcher, nurse, or family member- seizes upon an unusual or unexpected diagnosis. In one chapter, a woman has unexplained paralysis associated with pregnancy. In another, a young man frequently visits the E.R., healthy except for a fever and some air under his skin. (?!) You get the idea.
I thought: I love medical mysteries, and so I tore through this collection in one quick evening of reading. Dr. Meador is a good writer: straightforward, clear and very concise, never condescending toward layperson readers. There's really no extra jibber-jabber in this collection, which is probably why I read it so fast. Meador describes and solves each case very quickly, providing only the minimum, most necessary information. My only real complaint is that I wanted so much more: more information about the patients, the diseases, the treatments. I wanted a little more flair in the storytelling- some red herrings, maybe, or even just more physical description of the settings, the people. I wish each story had just been fleshed out a little more.
Verdict: Stick it on the shelf.
Warnings: I don't know, some anatomy and stuff. It's medical, not sexy.
What I'm reading next: I Never Promised You a Rose Garden by Joanne Greenberg
