The Human Condition Curated
What's New
Carol Donley on Learning to Heal: Reflections on Nursing School in Poetry and Prose edited by Jeanne Bryner and Cortney Davis
"In this remarkable anthology, 51 women and men describe
their nursing school experiences, from initial fears and anxieties to
increasing confidence and appreciation of the profession."
Russell Teagarden on Amour directed by Michael Haneke
"Michael Haneke, the screenwriter and director, could have chosen from
many life contexts to explore amour. For this movie, he chose aging and
the inevitable infirmities and illnesses that come with it."
Albert Howard Carter on Leonardo's Foot: How 10 Toes, 52 Bones, and 66 Muscles Shaped the Human World by Carol Ann Rinzler
"Rinzler presents a large amount of information in short compass and speculates about the many meanings of the human foot and medical attempts to remedy illnesses and deformities that afflict it."
Marilyn McEntyre on The Compassionate Connection: The Healing Power of Empathy and Mindful Listening by David Rakel
"Even readers who come to this book having read other studies focused on empathy in clinical care or on compassionate practices will find in this thoughtful book new incentives to be more attentive to themselves as well as their patients, and new ways to develop more nuanced approaches to clinical encounters."
Cortney Davis on joy: 100 poems by Christian Wiman
"This is a collection of poems that should be read slowly, and then again, a pond dipped into in times of grief or in times of unbridled joy."
Michael Natter on Alpha: Abidjan to Paris by Bessora
"Alpha is part graphic novel, part heartbreaking memoir of cabinetmaker Alpha Coulibaly. It chronicles the story of a man on a journey to find his family and a better life, but his story could easily apply to the tens of thousands others who are seeking refuge."
Steven Field on This Narrow Space: A Pediatric Oncologist, His Jewish Muslim and Christian Patients and a Hospital in Jerusalem by Elisha Waldman
"The author is a pediatric oncologist who grew up in the United States, went to medical school in Israel, returned to the United States for fellowship and to begin practice, and then, feeling unsettled both personally and professionally, moved to Israel for a “dream job” opportunity and out of a deep sense of belonging."
Martin Kohn on The Cardiologist's Daughter by Natasha Kochicheril Moni
"The Cardiologist's Daughter offers readers a mélange of memories, retelling through poetry how the poet's mixed heritage (East Indian and Dutch) fused into her unique identity-- as a naturopath daughter of an M.D. father and R.N. mother."
Shawn Thomas on From Fish to Philosopher; the story of our internal environment by Homer William Smith
"From Fish to Philosopher serves as another example of the extraordinary insights that are born from interdisciplinary studies. Dr. Smith was a revered medical school professor of physiology, but it is clear from his writing that he had a great deal of interest in other fields as well."
Guy Glass on Victorians Undone: Tales of the Flesh in the Age of Decorum by Kathryn Hughes
"Victorians Undone is no ordinary history book. If you have ever felt dissatisfied by a sterile biography, wondering if its subject actually possessed bodily functions, look no further."
Sebastian Galbo on Consumptive Chic: A History of Beauty, Fashion, and Disease by Carolyn Day
“From the late 18th to mid-19th centuries a peculiar trend swept through European fashion. Through couture and cosmetics, this vogue emulated the physical ravages of a much-feared disease, tuberculosis, aestheticizing its symptoms as enviable qualities of physical beauty.”
Jacalyn Duffin on His Bloody Project: Documents Relating to the Case of Roderick Macrae by Graeme Burnet
"A remarkable novel that is well anchored in the feudalistic, social history of Highland Scotland and in the history of medicine and psychiatry."
Total Database Contents
- 175 Visual Art Annotations
- 2775 Literature Annotations
- 263 Performing Art Annotations
- 98 Artists
- 1767 Authors
- 153 Keywords