Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
80th out of 87 books
—
28 voters
Blood and Guts: A Short History of Medicine
by
Roy Porter
An eminently readable, entertaining romp through the history of our vain and valiant efforts to heal ourselves. Mankind's battle to stay alive and healthy for as long as possible is our oldest, most universal struggle. With his characteristic wit and vastly informed historical scope, Roy Porter examines the war fought between disease and doctors on the battleground of the...more
Paperback, 224 pages
Published
June 17th 2004
by W. W. Norton & Company
(first published November 1st 2002)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
536)
This is one of the best books I’ve read in a long while. Roy Porter was a professor on the social history of medicine at University College London. His skill at delivering cogent, interesting lectures is readily apparent in this book. I wish I’d been able to sit in on his classes.
Blood and Guts breaks the long history of medicine into easily digestible chunks: Disease, Doctors, The Laboratory, Surgery, The Hospital. Each chapter sweeps over the span of medicine, picking out the choicest tidbits...more
Blood and Guts breaks the long history of medicine into easily digestible chunks: Disease, Doctors, The Laboratory, Surgery, The Hospital. Each chapter sweeps over the span of medicine, picking out the choicest tidbits...more
By no means a bad book and it does cover the history of medicine as would be expected in a volume of this length. To those complaining that it is too brief I would have to respond with this question: why did you buy a book on the history of medicine that is stated online to be just 169 pages long after the deduction of notes? If purchased in a shop it is surely EVEN MORE OBVIOUS that intricate detail will not be found inside. I digress...
Anyway, worth a read if you want to put medical and surgic...more
Anyway, worth a read if you want to put medical and surgic...more
1 like · like · see review
view 1 comment
Factoids ahoy!
A slim introduction to the history of Western illness and medicine, with eight themes (disease; doctors; therapies; etc) addressed chronologically. Like the Sherwin Nuland book I read earlier in summer, 'Blood and Guts' illustrates how respect for conventions can lead people to ignore or attempt to explain away evidence that appears 'contrary', and how much we like a good framework (4 seasons, 4 humours), even if we have to jiggle the facts around to fit in.
My favourite chapter was...more
A slim introduction to the history of Western illness and medicine, with eight themes (disease; doctors; therapies; etc) addressed chronologically. Like the Sherwin Nuland book I read earlier in summer, 'Blood and Guts' illustrates how respect for conventions can lead people to ignore or attempt to explain away evidence that appears 'contrary', and how much we like a good framework (4 seasons, 4 humours), even if we have to jiggle the facts around to fit in.
My favourite chapter was...more
This was a big disappointment. I know the subtitle includes the word "short" but this is far too brief. It reads more like an annotated outline of points the author wanted to cover in greater depth than an actual history. To be fair, this was published posthumously and I can't help thinking Mr. Porter wasn't quite done with it when he died. It's unfortunate that he didn't get a chance to finish because so many of the topics are interesting, and his take on the controversies is so well informed a...more
this is an incredible book - not only in its frankness of how modern medicine and surgery were pioneered but also of the failures and challenges those pioneers faced along the way. Modern medicine is something we all take for granted these days or at the very least under appreciate what people have put in to is - (and in many cases sacrificed). Sadly this book was written to accompany a TV series something I didn't realise till after I had read the book which is a shame as if it as illuminating...more
This book was well-written, if erudite in nature. Many times the sentences seemed to run on longer than necessary - with interjections of unneccessary details. Overall, however, I found it informative, interesting and thought-provoking, especially with regards to the current state of healthcare/medicine in the US today. The book focuses on the evolution of the practice of medicine and does at times read like a textbook, albeit a captivating one. Props to Mr. Porter - I thoroughly enjoyed his sum...more
This book was a little too much info squeezed into too small of a book. I would rather delve deeply into a few interesting topics, than skim such a broad range of topics. I didn't get far before giving up on it, wishing the author had chosen to narrow his scope. Also, it wasn't in the least bit humorous, a major drawback. Please, authors, go ahead and include the funny bits with our history lessons. Thank you.
Thanks to Samantha for this recommendation (or, at least, she put it on her to-read list). I loved the sections on the history of disease and doctors, but the medical research sections were too short. I'm never going to remember most of what I read. For example, the development of pasteurization and cultures took all of two paragraphs. Still, it was a fun read.
This is a concise overview of the history of medical science. Would have given it a better review, but a few of the middle chapters were kind of boring. The first few and last 2 chapters are great, though. Clearly summarized, no moralizing. Lots of period prints throughout the book make it a fun read. Some interesting useless facts, of course. Reading this book, it seemed like every sentence could have corresponded to an entire book, but it was not too dense to be a relaxing non-fiction read.
One of the most prolific medical historians of all time, Roy Porter's Book is an amazing story of the journey medicine has taken since the ancient years. A must read and a gift to those searching for knowledge on medical history.
I read this one at the same time as F. Gonzalez-Crussi's 'A Short History of Medicine' and I liked this one a lot more, much more readable. Interesting that surgeons were once surgeons/barbers and that they were considered greatly inferior to physicians. It is amazing how far medicine has come in the last 200 years, heck the last 100 years. I recommend this book as a nice overview for anyone who wants to know more but not too much.
A very slim, yet apparently comprehensive introduction to the subject.
I will most certainly be returning to its well organised, 16 page reference list to guide my further reading.
I will most certainly be returning to its well organised, 16 page reference list to guide my further reading.
Not kidding about short. Good but too concise. Ill certainly seek out his longer works of which many exist in history of medicine and science in general.
Excellent little book in a short span of space and a fascinating read all the while. I have the strangest urge to give this to my medical friends. :)
Exactly what the title says: a short history of medicine. So interesting and so readable. This is a concise overview of medical history and a handy reference for names and dates.
Could not retain my attention; nice pictures, though.
Well, he certainly got the "short" part right.
A brief but elegant history of medicine.
Some interesting facts about medical history. Helped me put some of the things I do every day in historical context.
For non-fiction this book was unusually atmospheric. Reading it was like strolling through a musty and over-stocked curiosity shop where papers have browned edges and specimens are sprawled on pins or suspended in jars. It's also inundating in the same way, full of quizzical facts that I loved observing but couldn't remember after closing the cover.
Excellent quick introduction to the history of medicine. Accessible but thorough, taking into account the social forces at play in the development of medicine.
This isn't just a recommendation for my pre-med buddies! This is an easy-to-read introduction into the history of medicine- just like it says. This book is a shortened form of The Greatest Benefit to Mankind. If you've ever wondered- who discovered veins? - what was the first operation?- this is a must read for you!
A pretty readable interesting history of Western medicine. There are great illustrations. I'm not quite sure what I was expecting after the first sentence about the war between doctors and disease - but it wasn't QUITE fulfilled.
Some very fascinating, interesting facts about how we got where we are medically and all the crazy beliefs we had along the way. It tells why we say "graveyard shift" and "saved by the bell" and other nifty facts. Good read.
Short comment. I very much enjoyed the the first 75% of the book but found the authors views of the NHS as an outdated service receiving hand me down from the USA upsetting and spoilt the end of a good book on medical history.
The first half of this book is really good, but then it kind of dwindles down in interest level. I'm not sure if the chapters really got less interesting, or if I just got tired of the topic.
Jul 18, 2008
Sarah Kingston
is currently reading it
So far, the whirlwind tour of disease and civilization and their relationship has been entertaining, if disturbing.
A nice overview including some great illustrations.
it had a lot of information but was also pretty dry.
Jun 17, 2013
Abbas Hawazin عباس هوازن
marked it as to-read
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Roy's books cover several fields: the history of geology, London, 18th-Century British ideas and society, medicine, madness, quackery, patients and practitioners, literature and art, on which subjects (and others) he published over 200 books are articles.
List of works can be found @ wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Porter )
More about Roy Porter...
List of works can be found @ wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy_Porter )
Share This Book
4 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
