I'm not fully sure what I was expecting, but this wasn't quite it. It was a bit more graphic and involved than I thought it would be, and probably not the best book for a hypochondriac.

I was granted this book on #netgalley and have been dipping in and out of it on my way to work. Let me tell you, reading about ruptured bowels, amputations, circumcision and bloodletting first thing in the morning certainly put me off my breakfast. It’s also quite terrifying to realise all the things that can go wrong with your body, through no fault of your own. Anyone who has ever watched Embarrassing Bodies on Channel 4 knows exactly what I mean.

Sometimes when I get books on netgalley there are errors as the books are often still proofs. Sometimes there are formatting issues or the text may contain notes betwen the author and copy editor, which is all quite interesting. In the case of this book there were so random asides that spiralled away from the main point that I decided to check out a final copy from the library. I felt like I was reading an unfinished draft and wanted to make sure I was reading what the author intended.
However, the news was not good.
I checked where I had read up to on my kindle, found the corresponding section in the book, and discovered I had arrived at the chapter titled ‘Anal Fistula’. So far, so horrifying.
The first paragraph has a sentence which says ‘King Louis XIV...was, in James Brown’s words, like a sex machine.’ Now, like me, you may be wondering what King Louis XIV has to do with James Brown, and Dear Reader, you will not be surprised to know they have sweet F.A. to do with one another. The section doesn’t even provide very much information about Louis’s sex life, if indeed he was a sex machine.
Throughout the book there are strange comments like this. It’s as if the author is trying to make a joke, but it doesn’t quite work. Stick to the pertinent information Mr Author Man, there aint nothing funny about anal fistulas or getting your foreskin bashed off with a sharpened stone. True fact.

There seems to have been a recent boom in medical books aimed at the general reader, both memoirs and books about particular aspects of surgery. Unfortunately this is not up there with the best of them. I’m disappointed, and quite frankly surprised that this book made it to publication in its current state.

Under the Knife

This is a compelling and often gory read; it's not for the faint hearted as it details many conditions and procedures.

I found it absolutely riveting. Arnold Van de Laar's narrative moves along at a pace and packs in a huge amount of history and linguistics. I was particularly interested in many of the word origins and learned a great deal. I was unaware, for example, that healers using their hands were chirurgeons. From the Greek kheirourgia, kheir for hand and ergon for work. Hence the origin of 'surgeon'.

There are 28 chapters plus an extensive glossary at the end with explanation of medical terms and a comprehensive bibliography. Each chapter considers a specific medical condition mainly in the context of someone famous. Houdini's unexpected death is explained and there are details of Royals who suffered ill health including Queen Victoria, Edward Vll and Louis XVI. I found the chapters on obesity and stoma fascinating insight into the health of Popes.

This book is totally unique and very readable account. I enjoyed it immensely and thank John Murray, publisher, for a review copy via Netgalley.

I do love Medical History (I even studied it, thank you GCSE History!) and I knew I would find this book a fascinating read and I wasn’t let down at all as Van De Laar gives us chapter after chapter of how medicine and surgery has changed but also most well known examples of their use.

The chapters that particularly captured my attention were the chapters on Shock near the beginning of the book and the story of Empress Sisi which is both interesting but also incredible, thinking what the body can deal with when it is in a state of shock. The chapter on Narcosis is also fascinating and how it links to Queen Victoria really puts the issue in context for the reader.

Throughout the book are useful text boxes giving you a further depth to the area the chapter is focused on that really adds to the understanding of the book. Covering a range of topics from Anesthesiology to Sutures that really add to the topic you are reading about.

A well presented and brilliant read for the medical history nerd in your life, Under The Knife is a cut above the rest (I’m sorry).