Graphic Medicine and Other Media

This exploration begins when Dr. Jerome Groopman was a medical student, ignorant of the vital role of hope in patients’ lives–and it culminates in his remarkable quest to delineate a biology of hope. With appreciation for the human elements and the science, Groopman explains how to distinguish true hope from false hope–and how to gain an honest understanding of the reach and limits of this essential emotion.

Anyone who's had to care for an aging parent knows the difficulty of deciding when it's time to consider a nursing home or hospice. In Being Mortal, the ever thoughtful surgeon and author Atul Gawande asks us to think about what it really means to age gracefully and die with dignity when modern medicine can do so much to extend life.

Some of the stories in Calypso are wonderfully absurd, like the one in which he attempts to feed his own fatty tumor to a snapping turtle. Other stories are bleak, hilarious and moving. His ruminations on his sister's suicide, his ailing father and his mother's alcoholism draw on a pathos we haven't seen from Sedaris before; it's a new depth that makes this particular collection essential. -Jessica Reedy

Culinary historian Michael W. Twitty delves into the history of Southern cuisine, exploring the deep connections between food, culture, and ancestry. Through personal stories and historical research, Twitty traces his family’s culinary traditions and their significance in shaping regional foodways. This book offers an insightful perspective on the historical influences that have contributed to the diverse flavors of Southern cooking.

Maya Dusenbery integrates scientific and sociological research, interviews with experts from diverse sectors, and personal stories from individuals to provide a comprehensive look at the challenges women face within the medical field.

She begins with an account of her experiences working as a “medical actor,” performing as patients with [complex ailments] that medical students must diagnose, encounters that deliver the realization that empathy requires humility and imagination. She discloses her own [medical challenges] and asks, “When does empathy actually reinforce the pain it [seeks to alleviate]?” -Donna Seaman

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Matthew Desmond examines the challenges faced by families experiencing housing instability. Through in-depth research and personal narratives, Desmond highlights the economic and social factors that impact housing access. This book sheds light on the experiences of tenants and landlords alike, offering a comprehensive look at the complexities of housing policies and financial barriers in urban communities.

After the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina, with rising floodwaters, power failures, and extreme heat, exhausted caregivers made difficult decisions about patient prioritization for rescue. Months later, some health professionals faced criminal allegations that they intentionally administered drugs to expedite patients' deaths. She unravels the complex events of those days, focusing on a hospital struggling for survival and exploring a conversation about the most challenging form of health care rationing. In this book, she delves into the hidden dilemmas of end-of-life care and highlights the lack of preparedness in America for the impact of large-scale disasters, offering insights on how we can improve.

Siddhartha Mukherjee is an exceptional science writer who makes even the most complex aspects of biology accessible. In The Gene, his engaging study of what is known and believed about inheritance, he focuses on the human side of science — illustrating how unexpected factors, missed opportunities, and personal ambition can influence outcomes in both scientific research and life. 'Science is an endurance sport,' Mukherjee writes. For instance, Austrian monk Gregor Mendel began his famous pea experiments after facing setbacks in his attempts to teach high school science. While the book is filled with humor and warmth, it also addresses the troubling history of eugenics. For anyone curious about the promise and limitations of 'personalized medicine' and the journey of genetic science, The Gene offers valuable insight.

At 6 am on 28 August 1854, the city of London struggled to sleep at the end of an unbearably hot summer. At 40 Broad Street, Soho, Sarah Lewis was awake tending to her feverish baby girl. As she disposed of a used bucket of water into the cesspool in front of her lodgings, it marked the beginning of a cholera epidemic that would claim 50,000 lives in England and Wales -- and spark a battle between humans and microbes unlike any other. At the heart of this story is Dr. John Snow: a vegetarian, teetotaller, anaesthesiologist, and Soho resident, whose innovative use of maps to demonstrate that cholera was spread by water — not by air as was widely believed -- led him into conflict with the medical establishment, but ultimately helped to defeat one of the era’s greatest public health crises.

A thought-provoking exploration of various altered states of consciousness, coupled with a deep dive into the latest brain science and the emerging community of psychedelic therapists. Pollan examines the historical record to distinguish the facts about these substances from the myths that have surrounded them since the 1960s, when a small group of advocates sparked a significant backlash against what was once a promising area of research. A distinctive and insightful blend of science, memoir, travel writing, history, and medicine, How to Change Your Mind exemplifies participatory journalism. At once illuminating and captivating, it offers a compelling account of a journey into an exciting and unexpected new frontier in our understanding of the mind, the self, and our place in the world.

This widely admired classic within the medical community will inspire and support patients, healthcare professionals, and anyone embarking on medical study, internships, or practice. With sharp logic and humor, Dr. Oscar London reflects on the challenges and rewards of medicine, sharing timeless truths, reality checks, and valuable insights drawn from 30 years in general practice while maintaining a humble and balanced perspective on both his profession and himself.

Oliver Sacks's The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat explores the stories of individuals experiencing significant perceptual and cognitive challenges: patients who have lost their memories, leaving much of their pasts behind; who can no longer recognize people or familiar objects; who experience involuntary movements or vocalizations; whose limbs seem foreign to them; or who have been misunderstood as having intellectual disabilities yet possess extraordinary artistic or mathematical talents. While these experiences may seem unfathomably strange, they remain deeply human in Dr. Sacks's compassionate and insightful telling. These stories offer a view into life struggling against immense adversity and allow us to imagine, with empathy, what it must be like to live with neurological conditions. Sacks is a skilled healer who always remembers medicine's ultimate responsibility: "to the suffering, affected, and resilient human being."

Nestled in the Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee, the town of Johnson City had always seemed untouched by the broader anxieties of modern American life. But when the local hospital treated its first AIDS patient, a crisis once thought to be limited to urban areas arrived in the town. Working in Johnson City was Abraham Verghese, a young doctor from India specializing in infectious diseases. Dr. Verghese quickly became the community’s AIDS expert, overwhelmed by a growing number of patients of all genders whose stories deeply impacted him. Verghese brought a unique perspective to Johnson City: as a skilled doctor, an outsider who could communicate with people wary of local practitioners, and a compassionate writer who recognized that the events unfolding in this conservative community were both a medical and a spiritual challenge.

Schulte's findings are illuminating, puzzling, and sometimes surprising: the experience of being overwhelmed affects our brains' size. But she also uncovers signs of meaningful progress—evidence that what the ancient Greeks called 'the good life' is still within reach. Schulte explores companies reimagining workplace cultures, travels to countries where policies encourage work environments that don't equate shorter hours with a lack of productivity (and where people actually achieve more), and meets individuals who have found ways to share responsibilities effectively. With personal anecdotes, humor, and optimism, Overwhelmed offers a fresh perspective on modern life -- a deep dive into the misconceptions and pressures that have made leisure seem like a thing of the past and a roadmap for how we can reclaim time for it in our lives today.

The untold story of how poison shook Jazz Age New York City. A pair of forensic scientists began their pioneering chemical detective work, working to end an era when untraceable poisons provided a path to the perfect crime. Chief medical examiner Charles Norris and toxicologist Alexander Gettler investigate cases such as a family mysteriously losing their hair, factory workers suffering from fragile bones, a diner serving poisoned pies, and many others. Each case presents a new and dangerous puzzle, and Norris and Gettler develop groundbreaking experiments to extract even the most elusive compounds from human tissue.

What does it mean to fully dedicate oneself to helping others? In Strangers Drowning, Larissa MacFarquhar explores the lives of individuals with deep ethical commitments, sharing their intimate stories—their unwavering integrity and compromises; their courage and moments of folly; their joys, defeats, and profound dilemmas.

For many Americans, skipping trips to the dentist isn't about missing out on a perfect smile. It's about lacking access to basic care. Nearly 20 percent of children in the U.S. have untreated cavities, and the percentage is higher for adults. Mary Otto, a former Washington Post reporter, goes beyond the statistics—she brings attention to the stories of individuals who have suffered, including Deamonte Driver, a 12-year-old boy from Maryland who tragically died from an infection caused by a neglected tooth. -- Nancy Shute

An important book for health professionals seeking to address America's care gaps. The term 'white fragility' describes the defensive responses that some individuals may have when confronted with issues of race. These responses often involve emotions such as anger, fear, and guilt and behaviors like argumentation and silence. These behaviors can maintain racial dynamics and hinder productive cross-racial dialogue.