5 comments about LA Doctora.

1. During travels to the Explorama Lodges twice, I was able to see what Dr. Smith has been able to accomplish. She is a marvelously dedicated individual. This books is a diary of her experiences, but after having visited the area, I was also able to have similar experiences from a tourist perspective. Dr. Smith, who I have met and talked to is a creative, stong and full person, dedicated to make a difference for the people in this area of the Amazon. She has done that and the book tells her story.



2. Linnea Smith's story captures you from the very beginning. Telling of her experiences as a physician in the Amazon jungle often keeps you on the edge of your seat. Taken directly from her journals, it discusses her experiences over a 7 year period of practicing medicine in the jungle without all the current medical technology. She also talks of the natives, their beliefs and some difficulties encountered because of the disparity of cultures. This book is an easy and enjoyable read.



3. It wasn't so long ago that I had the privilege of meeting Linnea in Peru. She was just coming back from a fundraising journey to the States, where she received a prize of recognition for her selfless work in Amazonia. I was with a tour group that was to stay at several Amazonian jungle lodges. The Amazon was in it's annual flood stage and the only way any of us could get around was by small boat. La doctora Linnea had her own dugout which she paddled to and from the clinic, the lodge and her patients all by herself, in a dress. She wore skirts almost entirely because of the humidity and local custom. The only women who wear shorts or pants in Amazonia are tourists and scientists. Every evening Linnea would come to the lodge for a bit of relaxation and conversation with whomever was staying there, but one couldn't help but notice how more comfortable she was in the company of the locals and guides. The Ribiernos [local river dwellers] didn't ask rude or probing questions. They were friendly without conpromising her privacy.This ingrained need to keep part of herself to herself comes through in the book she's written. She's happy to talk about her work and her love of the people, but reveals little of her previous life. I recommend this book for the incredible story, the sense of place, to learn about people we would otherwise never know. She may not speak book-learned Spanish, but communicates fluently with her friends and patients. As she writes, she arrived in Peru speaking no Spanish.



4. This is somewhat of a minority viewpoint in comparison to the previous five customer reviews already written. I read this book because of the local publicity it received here in Wisconsin, the fact that I have been in Peru and in Amazon region (though not the same part as Dr. Linnea), am interested in Latin American culture, and speak fluent Spanish.

   Dr. Linnea doesn't. The one complete Spanish sentence in the book contains a major grammar error that most students wouldn't make mid-way through their first semester of college Spanish. Of the isolated Spanish words she uses, she gets a couple wrong. She can be forgiven for this. She obviously managed to communicate adequately with her patients and she's a physician, after all, not a linguist. I'm aware this seems like nitpicking, and this is not my reason for a mere 3-star review.

   What I find lacking in this book is emotional engagement with the reader. I liked this book passably, but wanted to like it so much more. Dr. Linnea is really the only character in it and she seems to be a rather private person. She gives us her opinions much more than her feelings. Maybe this is typical of the majority of physicians. We never really get to know her patients or any other person in the book. If she develops close relationships, we don't learn of them. Some patients improve and survive, some die, but it's a bit like a catalogue of people who barely have names or faces and come through her office (or she goes to them). I'm also interested in medicine and geography in general, and a book in a similar vein, that of a doctor practicing "backwoods medicine" that is truly wonderful (and that I'd hoped this one would resemble) is Dr. Abraham Verghese's MY OWN COUNTRY. (He treats AIDS patients in Appalachia in the mid-1980s.) Perhaps he's atypical in the way he becomes personally/emotionally involved with his patients or in the way that he is able to put human faces and lives on a disease and write about it all. Dr. Linnea, in spite of being a wonderful person who has done dangerous, extremely outstanding work, is not able (or chooses not) to do what Verghese did in his book.

   Unlike another customer who reviewed this, I definitely don't think this was ghost-written. Dr Linnea is right there, revealing not one iota more than she wants to. I think the "problem" can be seen right in her acknowledgements, when, regarding her publishers, she writes that they "gave me unlimited latitude in what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it." Sorry, but this book needed much more editorial guidance. She's a physician, not a professional writer, and though this effort is quite passable, it could have been so much better.

   The book is informative, educational up to a point, gives a good perspective on "jungle" medicine" vs. the US mainstream practice thereof, and is culturally sensitive. (Though at one point I winced, when she said that the inhabitants, almost all of whom live in abysmal poverty, "seemed happy." This made me think of 19th century slaves in the US who, many contended "seemed happy.") There are a few funny moments, especially when Dr. Linnea describes w/ dead-on accuracy her encounters with the Peruvian bureaucracy, redtape and corruption.

   All in all, well worth reading, but don't expect great emotional engagement or gripping human drama.




5. I met La Doctora just as the book was being written. (I believe it was ghost written, which is probably not unusual.)

   Jackie and I spent a few days at Explorama and talked at some length with Dr. Linnea. This book is not embellished in any way. This is an accurate account of life in that part of the world.

   Her descriptions of places were perfectly clear to me, since I've been there. It's hard to know how these descriptions will play out in the mind's eye of other readers. The beginning of the book was particularly fascinating.

   Our face-to-face meeting left me with the impression that she is not trying to run away from society, not trying to crusade for the underprivileged, not trying to be "holier than thou". She really likes what she is doing. The book confirms this.

   When you read this book you are looking inside La Doctora. Nothing is hidden. There are no pretenses. She is simply good people.

   Incidently, she wanted the book named "At the River's Edge" and the publishers wanted "La Doctora". The publishers won.

1 comments about A Doctor Looks at War: My Year in Iraq.

1. I looked forward to reading this book, having read a number of books on the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, from both the troop and medical perspective. What I felt overshadowed this book was the heavy Christian leanings. I'm not one to argue one's belief or faith but it came across (and I later noticed on the back cover the subtext:War, military, Christian Life, General) heavy handed [for me]. Some may gain more from this book than I did and I certainly salute Dr. Hodges service and sacrifice his family had to make. I only wish it was broader based to really reach a wider audience.

5 comments about White Coat: Becoming A Doctor At Harvard Medical School.

1. This book is good, but Melvin Konner's book is better. This is really an essay collection - each chapter is 3/4 pages long.
   
   The frustrating part is how she goes on and on about medical ethics, the patient/doc relationship, etc. I think it shows how doctors see themselves as uber-important. Everything they do is so important it has to be dissected ad-nauseum.



2. I really enjoy this book, it makes me recall the days when I was a medical student, clerk, and intern. The observation and description are superb. And in a feminine point of view, it makes the scenario more detailed and heart-stirring. It doesn't intend to pretend to be saint or great as someone thinks that Harvard something should be, I think it just honestly reflect the feelings, the thoughts come to mind. And I hope the author can publish more books like this. According to the introduction in the Taiwan's translated edition, the author works at Indian Reservation in Arizona now. So, I think the author is really a good doctor who doesn't regard "life quality" as a doctor's major concern. That's not easy.



3. After reading about her experiences, I made my decision to go into the field of medicine (as opposed to nursing or PA). This book may have been one of the determining factors in leading me to be who I am, and who I will be in the future!



4. Kind of a big bulk of dull recounts, set in a fog of years past. I find it hard to remember anything special about it. I strongly suggest in its place: On Call: A Doctor's Days and Nights in Residency, by Emily R. Transue, or Another Day In The Frontal Lobe, Katrina Firlik. These books are written with the depth that White Coat lacks.
   
   Also, is it normal for a second year medical student to say something like this?
   (group of med students watching 'ER')
   Girl points at TV, says: "V-fib! That's ventricular fibrillation!!"
   
   Woah! I'm actually learning!!



5. You don't like fat people! That's totally cool, but for the love of god, settle down with the OBESE descriptions. I was also impressed (as I know you wanted me to be!) that despite the fact that you're a med student and working 36 hour days, you still managed to work out! Often! Good for you, sister! And good for ME! That's inspiring!! Lastly, I'm sure that it's because you work out, but how many times can you work in the fact that your size small lab coat (also, scrubs) was/were just too darned big for you? By my count, four.
   
   Ma'am, your tiny size and inspiring writing has shown me the error of my own slovenly ways! And someday, I certainly hope to end up in a book written by a snotty intern after I show up in the ER (and heaven forfend, if I'm having a baby-- women giving birth were downright FILTHY, according to you!) described as an 'obese white woman'! That would be heartwarming!

1 comments about Broken Promises, Broken Dreams: The Stories of Jewish and Palestinian Trauma and Resilience.

1. If you are interested in understanding the stories of personal transformation of men and women who are fighting for justice in Israel and Palestine, this is the book for you. Dr. Rothchild shares her own personal journey as an American Jew who was raised to support Israel, but learned firsthand from working with peace activists in the US and in Palestine and Israel that the Palestinian narrative is powerful and transforming. Dr. Rothchild reports facts on the ground with insightful accuracy and in enlightening detail. If you keep an open mind, you too may find yourself challenging old assumptions and looking for new answers.

5 comments about The Knife Man: The Extraordinary Life and Times of John Hunter, Father of Modern Surgery.

1. An interesting and historical view of one very early practicitioner who realized the importance of cleanliness. Very well written and interesting for anyone intersted in history, medicine and surgery; or just a great read!



2. A thorough, very well researched biographical account of the Georgian surgeon/naturalist/anatomist/educator John Hunter. I think anyone, after reading this book, will be amazed that Hunter's name is not more commonplace today. He was a revolutionary within surgery and medicine and worked with and trained others who shaped medicine in the U.S. and elsewhere. For anyone interested in history, science, or medicine, this is a valuable and interesting book to read.
   
   Wendy Miller obviously went to great lengths to research the subject matter for this book and is able to present what at least to the less informed reader seems to be a genuine account of Hunter's life. While she is obviously enamored with Hunter's ingenuity and approach to his craft, Miller also points out the many places where his theories were incorrect and where he obeyed convention, albeit incorrect, rather than pressing forward with his hypothesis driven approach. Each chapter of the book is titled after some artifact or preparation of Hunter's and describes the situation regarding it's creation or acquisition by Hunter. While this makes each chapter somewhat a story in itself, it is at times difficult to follow the events of Hunter's life as they are not presented chronologically. A timeline is at the back of the book, but often chapters overlap by ~5 years, such that the beginning of a new chapter must revert back 5 years before the end of the preceding chapter. This is effective in spots, as Hunter's diverse interests are presented one by one rather than in parallel with his other concurrent academic pursuits, but the structure sometimes complicates descriptions of Hunter's interpersonal relationships.
   
   Overall, this is a very well done book and should be read by anyone interested in science, history, or medicine. It is regrettable that Hunter is not more widely appreciated, but this fact makes the book all the more amazing/valuable.



3. John Hunter was one of the champions who introduced scientific methods to medicine over the opposition of those who valued ideology over evidence. He fought this battle only about 225 years ago when doctors often prescribed bloodletting. John Hunter paid attention to evidence that it was sometimes best to leave gunshot wounds untreated rather than apply the remedies physicians often applied at that time. This book is fascinating and is written very well. I was shocked to learn how primitive medicine was only 225 years ago. Our recent progress under the scientific approach has been astounding. John Hunter's personal story was also a very dramatic rise from poverty to recognition as his nation's leading surgeon and physician.



4. Fantastic, intriguing, fun to read. Brings a deep respect to our progenitors and how they ever survived those "unapprised " years. It is a great tribute to the great man John Hunter.



5. Wendy Moore does an excellent job of bringing John Hunter's life and accomplishments to us in the context in which they occurred. This book is not only a well written biography on a subject deserving of widespread recognition; it also serves as a great historical reference with intersections into minute aspects of the lives of other notables. The horrific conditions under which individuals in the 1700s underwent surgical procedures are elucidated in this work. In a time where there was no standardized process of peer review, the work of this genius was plaigarized by several who attended his anatomy lectures and much of his writing has been lost to us because of the plaigarism of one of his pupils, who eventually burned many of his papers following his death after he had used them as resource material for discoveries he himself claimed to have made. I am glad that this biography has done some justice for a previously obscure figure. That his conclusions about the evolution of species predated Darwin's birth is a testimony to his relentless pursuit of material fact in a climate where disputing biblical accounts of human origins was considered apostate.

5 comments about All Things Wise and Wonderful/the Lord God Made Them All.

1. As not only an animal lover, but (hopefully) an up and coming veterinarian, James Herriots books seemed like a great thing to look into.

   Herriot's books bring the Yorkshire countryside directly into your home. He brings the world of hard work, late nights, confusing symptoms, and the unknown of a vets life into the readers heart, but at the same time he also shows the thrill of pulling an animal back from the brink of death or bringing another life into the world.

   This wonderful combination starts off when Herriot leaves for the RAF to fight in World War II, but as he goes through basic training his mind (and the book) wanders back to his days in Darrowby doing what he loves best.




2. The opening story in "All Things Wise And Wonderful", has got to be one of the best stories I've ever read. It's very touching and inspirational, but it's only the precursor of good things to come. The stories contained in this book can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. Herriot will have you laughing, crying, frustrated and just about any other emotion you can imagine as you follow him on his rounds through Darrowby. Even if you have no interest in veterinary medicine or farming, you can enjoy everything that goes on. A five-star fantastic read.



3. James Herriot's books are delightful - A young country vet who moved to the Yorkshire dales in the 1930s and describes his experiences with the land, people and animals. You instantly feel a strong, common bond with the writer, and are transformed to a simpler, better time. He offers a glimpse into a life that was uncomplicated, peaceful, and without all those things that have come to define us in our society. His books are about people and the country, and the animals that surround them. He never dwells too long on something and as a result his writing style is in its simplicity, captivating. He takes a light-hearted view of himself and his profession - he reveals himself as unexperienced, always ready to have a good laugh about himself without condenscending, and as someone who is not morally or intellectually superior as so many of today's books heros reveal themselves to be. Even though his stories took place before and during the second world war, we do not feel out of place, but instantly at home. His books are divided into short stories, and make for excellent, easy reading, and unnecessary to start at the beginning - You can just start at any chapter in the book and instantly feel you know everything about him, even if you have never read any of his books before.



4. This is another wonderful book that makes you feel like you are right there with James. He has a wonderful way to descibe the little things so well you can see it in your mind. I traveled the countryside with him and meeting all types of different folks,down to earth people who touched me almost , but not quite , as deeply as the animals he ministered. As a nurse I appreciated the details he used and as a lover of animals I feel like I know them too. Way to go! I love each of his books more than the last.



5. I loved all the books in this series-I have this one in hardcover on my wish list. I borrowed and read it AND I LOVED IT! I am enchanted by Mr Harriot's writings and his stories. I feel like i am there watching and at times participating! A definite MUST READ

No comments about Pioneers of Cardiac Surgery.

5 comments about A Match to the Heart: One Woman's Story of Being Struck By Lightning.

1. Four not five because it won't change my life; four not three because I'm happy to own it and suspect I'll be wanting to read it again. Local libraries didn't have a copy within reach, and I was impatient after two people recommended the book to me in two days.
   
   Life = recovery from major injury is like that (like what Gretel describes in the book). My own path involves art, and a lightning strike, and doctors who thought Ativan was appropriate treatment, and a long winding trip back where every stage feels like progress, only until more progress is made.
   
   Lightning changes the way you process the world. That experience is conveyed in the book but it's possible some readers might not recognize that is some of what they're reading.
   
   Agreed, there's not a lot of hard science. That wasn't available in 1994. The book wanders. Forcibly re-wired brains do that. Skim the part that doesn't catch your attention; the topic shifts are generously marked. The book is self-centered. Illness and injury will do that to you. Stories of recovery that trace the reality of how long and slow the journey can be are useful. Match to the Heart may well be a book that gets passed on to friends in need of that knowledge.



2. This stunning book is about a woman who was struck by a bolt from the blue and lived to learn from it--and to teach others what she has learned. As a story, the plot is simple: a woman is walking with her dogs on her Wyoming ranch when she is struck by lightning. Gravely, almost fatally injured, she begins a two-year battle back to health, helped by parents, friends, a doctor, and a dog.
   
   But this almost surreal plot, compelling as it is, is not the most fascinating aspect of this quite remarkable book. What happens when you're struck by lightning? Here is how Ehrlich tells it:
   
   "I woke in a pool of blood, lying on my stomach some distance from where I should have been, flung at an odd angle to one side of the dirt path. The whole sky had grown dark. Was it evening, and if so, which one? How many minutes or hours had elapsed since I lost consciousness, and where were the dogs? I tried to call out to them but my voice didn't work. The muscles in my throat were paralyzed and I couldn't swallow. Were the dogs dead? Everything was terribly wrong. I had trouble seeing, talking, breathing, and I couldn't move my legs or right arm. Nothing remained in my memory--no sounds, flashes, smells, no warnings of any kind...When thunder exploded over me, I knew I had been hit by lightning."
   
   Erlich spent the next months on the brink of death, her nervous system seared almost beyond repair, trying to find a doctor who knew enough about the effects of electrocution to help her heal. That part of her search was facilitated by her parents, who took her to California and located an extraordinarily caring cardiologist who began to work with her. With his help, Ehrlich began to understand the physical consequences of a lighting strike. As a reader, I was fascinated with this aspect of her experience: what happens in the heart, in the brain, and throughout the body when millions of volts of electricity surge through the human system, short-circuiting the delicate human network. Her need to know became so strong that it later led her to witness open-heart surgery, to become a "traveler, a Marco Polo who had arrived in a place so exotic, few had seen it before."
   
   In her effort to satisfy this compelling need to understand and explain, Ehrlich explores the phenomenon from all angles. She studies the thunderstorms "that keep the global circuits going." She talks with others who have been similarly injured and found a growing network of survivors. She attends a conference and listens to the stories of 65 others, many far more disabled than she, all committed to the need to share, to transform society's ignorance about the dangers of electrical shock. Afterward, she reflects on "those humans who had awakened after being hit and became shamans and healers, and wondered what this new life of mine would be, carved from a ruined body and a ruined marriage, and what special passageways I could hollow out as in a labyrinth of dead ends."
   
   Lightning always follows the path of least resistance, Ehrlich says. It certainly struck her when she was most vulnerable. Separated and preparing for divorce, she was about to leave the ranch where she had lived for fifteen years. Her efforts to recover from the lightning strike took her to Santa Barbara. As she points out, it was an uncanny coincidence: the city is named for a woman whose murderer was struck by lightning, and who later became a saint, the protectress of those threatened by lightning and fire. With her was her dog Sam, who had also been struck, and whose devoted love carried her through the darkest hours of the next few years. "The role of supernatural helpers--guides, ferrymen, or harnessed dogs--stands for the guardian who carries the human spirit forward, whether from death back to life or the other way around....Sam is my guide, my Virgil through these never-ending gaps...that seem to lie before me."
   
   Like those others who became "shamans and healers" after their lightning strike, Ehrlich comes to her own awakening, understanding and valuing in new ways the fragile but durable body in which we all live this human life. And for her, as for many of us, it is the writing process itself that becomes the vehicle for enlightenment. If you are looking for a story of true grace under fire, you must read this. It will show you how to go deeply into the experience without being swallowed by it, how to explore the pain without being consumed by it, and how to open the wound and see the beauty of it.
   
   Susan Wittig Albert
   for Story Circle Book Reviews
   www.storycirclebookreviews.org



3. Not being a fan of travel books, my comments may be biased. Years ago when I wandered the globe, my desire was to live as a part of the places in which I found myself. I made a terrible tourist. I mostly wanted to go where I could speak the language of the natives and getting a letter home took weeks. The world isn't like that any more, nor maybe has it so been for a while for tourists and travel writers. The four books by Gretel Ehrlich I have read run the gauntlet. "This Cold Heaven", tells of her visits to Greenland between 1995 and 2001. It best conveys a feel of what life is like for, maybe the last generation of, Inuit hunters who use dogsleds. And out on the sled is where Ms Ehrlich most wants to be. It is a beautiful book interspersed with Rasmussen's, diaries and descriptions of his life in the north. The reader gets a sense of how the Inuit world is put together, its roots, some differences between various groups and the challenges it faces, at the edge of the internet age. The greatest changes, to a relatively remote First Nation in Canada I am familiar with, were brought about by television. A kind of passivity set in: no more making music and living by one's body became less central. When dogsled, hunting Greenlanders tell Ehrlich that they just want to give their children the experience of the hunt and that the children will decide in their turn whether they will live that way, I sense she is documenting the last of the dogsled hunts. In my First Nation, the elder who last used dogs is now too old, so four wheelers and snow mobiles are a way of life.
   
   What I lose patience with in Ehrlich's writing is most manifest in her book, "Questions of Heaven." She goes to China in search of Buddhism during the early stages of "getting rich is good." I don't quite understand her purpose except relating the difficulties of travel, telling anecdotes about some Chinese and their experiences from "let a thousand flowers bloom" to the cultural revolution, and her frustrated search. She goes to decayed monasteries which are just beginning to be opened to tourists. She is overwhelmed by the density, filth, poverty, pollution, etc. of China. Had she done some homework, all this wouldn't be such a revelation. In the Tibetan areas, she mentions the existence of Tibetan speaking westerners but does not explore who they are and why they are there even though she says she practices Tibetan Buddhism. The most interesting part of the book are her descriptions of the old man who was tortured during the cultural revolution and survived to resurrect traditional forms of music with a rag tag bunch of people from his valley. She doesn't explain why where he lives is more prosperous and happy than other places she visits.
   
   What I find difficult in many nature/travel writers she pours on in this book. Flowery language describing clouds, hills and landscape doesn't do much for me. I have spent much time out of doors. I could wax poetic about the blood red bark of an old manzanita in contrast to the peeling orange brown of a madrone, or the stages of a slime mold or a clown nudibranch grazing urchins. The silence of the redwoods, desiccated by summer dryness just before the coming rains, filled my yesterday's walk. No signs of animal life but a few dragonflies and a fleeting flock of bushtits. A few days earlier I had used "dead" to describe it to a walking companion, and she was a bit offended. A precontact California Indian would have known what I meant. Ehrlich evens makes mention of it during her recovery in California related in book four. But it takes more than poetic adjectives to convey a scene in nature. Reading lengthy passages of romantic descriptions of nature becomes tedious. I want to know why Ehrlich travels and writes, how the places she goes are assembled, the role landscape plays, their history, their challenges, the differences among their inhabitants, etc. If her book is the journey of an American Buddhist, there is very little critical relating to Buddhism except that either nobody she meets practices meditation, even chanting, or she doesn't inquire about it.
   
   The other two books, "Solace of Open Space," and "A Match to the Heart," fall somewhere in between. The former is good in the beginning, particularly in the descriptions of sheep herding, but becomes spotty after her marriage and life ranching. Ehrlich has really lived in Wyoming. She earned her spurs. But it would be great to know more about the strong, silent herders and ranchers: who are they; what is their inner landscape like; what are the tensions and rewards of working as they do? How does machinery effect their lives? During my brief stint as a cowboy, besides pushing cows between gigantic pastures, and sorting out the non-pregnant ones, I spent days building fences and hours in a four wheel drive pickup bouncing off-road. The chapters on the rodeo and Sun Dance give us far too little information on what these institutions are really like and what makes them tick. Ehrlich is also a tease when it comes to her personal life. We learn of the tragic death of her boyfriend which leads to her to stay in Wyoming, but the stuff of her one affair and her marriage are only hinted at. She is a beautiful woman in cowboy country. There has got to be more to it.
   
   In the last of the foursome, "A Match to the Heart," she is truck by lightening and relates her torturous recovery. It is a touching book. I have a lot of empathy with her struggle. Her descriptions of the deep humanity of her cardiologist are beautiful. But the book also leaves me a bit unsatisfied. The husband who doesn't seem to care, her trip to London, which seemed so inappropriate given her physical condition, the people with whom she connects but also seems distant from---I want to know more about her inner processes, her meditation practice. "A Match to the Heart" has aspects of a travel book, a chapter about being on a boat in the Alaska Panhandle without any sense of why she is there: a paying tourist; a guest of scientists or friends? When Ehrlich is on the way to recovery she lays out a map of the world pondering where next. It is hard to fathom, that she runs off from her Wyoming ranch to far distant travels and undertakes similar jaunts during her absences from Greenland. When she casually mentions these, the style of life implicit in so bouncing around the world seems inconsistent with the sense of place she is trying to convey. I am deeply attracted to what she has to say when she really inhabits the places in which she spends, as they say, quality time. I guess I want more of that from her.
   Charlie Fisher author of Dismantling Discontent: Buddha's Way Through Darwin's World



4. This is a strange book. The terrible accident this woman suffers is heart-breaking. Her recovery is slow and she suffers much. Still, reading this book was a struggle for me because the author writes too well, if one can say that. Nothing is ever just described. Each action must be documented in detail, creek crossings must be described with color, texture, recollections of other creek crossings. Finally, it just became too much.
   One other thing that was off-putting for me: as you read the book, it slowly becomes clear that her greatest achievement was leaving Berkeley and moving to Wyoming and working on a ranch. somehow, one bond was broken and another forged. While of obvious importance to her, it is not compelling enough to keep me interested.



5. In this book, Ehrlich uses many different techniques that all work together to make a good book. Basic ground rules of writing command us to ?show, don't tell? and keep the reader as involved as possible in the story. In general, Ehrlich uses special techniques where the story of her journey might become too abstract, too metaphysical, or too obtuse, or too personal to sustain us as readers. Here are a few techniques I found interesting.

   If I understand Ehrlich's intent, this is a book about a journey. But the journey isn't just a physical journey (Wyoming to California to North Carolina to California then back to Wyoming), it's also a spiritual, religious and emotional journey. In this sense then, this is partly a book about ideas.

   Interestingly, Ehrlich does not begin the book with a big set of ideas. She begins in the present tense, a voice and tense of intimacy and immediacy. She places us at the beginning in a dream or a dreamstate she experienced at the moment of the lightning strike. It seems to me, this sets Ehrlich up nicely to deal with the potential problems of a ?talky, head-game? narrative. My guess is she knows she's got a long journey ahead of her, filled with speculation, thoughts, feelings, readings, science facts, and what not, so she looks for devices to keep the narrative grounded and interesting. Her first technique is the present tense opening. Another technique she uses is to concentrate her details on the natural world. Although we learn about the physics of lightning, Ehrlich spends countless paragraphs describing every species of plant and animal one can encounter in California or Wyoming. With such a heavy dose of color, shape, sound and smell details I never encounter the accumulated feeling that I am too much absorbed in the narrator's head.

   Ehrlich's attention to the sensory details around her help us trust her as a narrator on subjects we don't understand. We trust her when she tells us how kelp smell, how fish look and feel, how the birds fly, the feeling of snow between her toes. Likewise, when she tells us something about lightning, about it's electrical charge, about the currents it follows, or tells us something about Tibetan philosophy, we believe her. Her credibility as an observer of nature carries over to her explanation of abstract or unobservable phenomenon. This makes the whole story much more believable, richer, and more concrete to us readers.

   In one section, Ehrlich talks about a legend she read about a lighting victim always being thirsty. In the next paragraph she switches to a scenic description of her filling water bottles because she's always thirsty. She goes on to cite some more similarities between her situation and the legend she read. This works to her advantage as a credible narrator because now, in other places, I will subconsciously project the description of other legends onto her.

   In Chapter 24, Ehrlich comes right out and tells us why the book is structured the way it is. She says it is shaped like a convection cloud, and that inside the narrative would zigzag like lightning. When I read this page, I admit it did make the structure of the book clearer to me, but I have to admit I don't like it. First of all, she says she dreamed this. I don't believe it. It seems incredible that in the middle of this search for peace and health, she would dream about the structure of a book. This bothers me most because, now I doubt all her dreams. When is she really dreaming and when is she dreaming for the convenience of putting something interestingly metaphysical at just the right place in the book.

   By contrast, the surgery scene is told mostly in straightforward scene. We hear the dialogue, see the things she sees without too much reflection and very little mysticism. This strikes me as a wise move, because by that point in the book, I needed a break from thinking too hard. It was nice to get a straightforward dose of scene, something fascinatingly interesting, yet at the same time as presented in scene form, it remained very present and accessible to me. I enjoyed just sitting back and watching the show. This let me catch my breath before hurtling into the thicker and thicker mix of narratives coming together at the end of the book.

   All in all, Ehrlich pulls off a masterful collection of writing techniques to tell a compelling story.

5 comments about The Autism Sourcebook: Everything You Need to Know About Diagnosis, Treatment, Coping, and Healing.

1. So many ASD kids are sick with bowel disease and live in terrible pain. This book only covers the bare minimum of ASD issues and deals effectively only with ABA treatment. Sadly, it takes far more to recover many children than ABA. Ms. Siff-Exhorn's book oversimplifies the very complex causes and medical problems that all too often go untreated or are simply viewed as behavioral.



2. But most of the information found in this book is easily found on the internet. I was hoping this book would help us find school/treatment for our 2 year old austistic son, but it was much different that I expected. Most of the material that was written was information about autism that I was already very well aware of.
   Disappointed. :o(



3. This is an excellent book if you're looking for something like an Autism encyclopedia. This isn't really one of those books that gets into too much personal detail about experiences with Autism, it's more of a guidebook and a reference manual for parents or ABA therapists. It has a plethora of information from diagnosis to dietary intervention. It covers all the bases and leaves you with plenty of hope for your child. Definitely a worthy buy for parents, teachers, or anyone else interested in learning more about Autism and how to intervene.



4. I wish this book had been around five years ago when my son was diagnosed. This is a great start, but ONLY a start. I feel there needs to be much more on sensory integration. My son is also PDD and ABA did nothing for his flapping and spinning. Newly diagnosed parents must remember that Autism isn't curable but treatable. With therapies, diet, and a good special ed teacher their child can live in our world very well. My son is now eight and looks, acts, talks like a typical boy. Certain social still cause stimming and behavior problems but all in all he's doing excellent. Again, this book is a great start.



5. Save your money ... this book is misleading, nothing new, and for anyone to claim that they have written a book that is "everything you need to know" about helping your child with Autism is, in itself, ludicrous.
   
   Apparently "everything you need to know" is just using ABA therapy.
   
   The Author, Karen Siff Exhorn, claims that her child is "completely recovered from Autism" (his actual diagnosis was PDD) but then the author also says that her son still needs a 1:1 ABA therapist to "support him" on playdates. The child is in 4th grade. That is hardly what I would consider to be "recovered".
   What this author appears to consider "recovered" is her son's ability to speak, to be compliant, and to not "look autistic" ... meaning, she focused on ABA "training" to get her kid to not flap or shriek and to "look normal". "Looking normal" was the most important thing to her, it seems. So her kid sounds as if he can appear normal, which is great, but her son still doesn't know how to relate to kids, converse with them, or play ...
   
   Half a page on Sensory Integration and a quarter of a page on Integrated Play Therapy can hardly be considered "everything you need to know".
   
   We all have 1000 times more computing power at our fingertips right now than NASA used to get a man on the moon ... yet few of us make very good use of it.
   
   It would be great if there were one book that would tell us everything we needed to know, but since every case of Autism is different, that is not possible. Forget this book and just search the web.

5 comments about Detour : My Bipolar Road Trip in 4-D.

1. As someone who also suffers from bipolar disorder, this book hit very close to home. Lizzie Simon gave us a nice break from the typical scientific terminology, and replaced it with the emotional and mental hardships and experiences that people diagnosed with bipolar disorder know all too well. Her bipolar roadtrip provided comfort and understanding to all of us. Thanks Lizzie



2. I absolutely love this book! When one reads about bipolar, it is usually medical information describing the characteristics and treatments of and for this illness. This raw engaging view from a wise young woman gives the reader a first hand view of the interior landscape of bipolar illness. We go on a journey of discovery with Lizzie. And an amazing journey it is. There is so much misinformation and stigma on mental illness. This book helps to bring forth the reality of the illness and gives one hope. There is still much to unfold in the arena of mental illness, but it is like any other illness, it is an illness! It's so stigmatized because there are so many unknowns. Do we stigmatize cancer, epilepsy, diabetes?! I have a friend who is bipolar and have always struggled to understand it and now the door has opened. I am also currently in the wake of standing by another individual struggling with this illness and have gained greater compassion and coping skills from this book. My own family has a lineage of mental illness, though no one ever truly "coped" with it. I grew up in fear and misunderstanding. Thank you Lizzie for bringing forth truth, understanding and demystifying as best as possible the land of bipolar! This is truly a must read!



3. This is not a scientific book. It is simply one woman's attempt to help us understand what goes on in the mind of a bi-polar person. It helped me better understand but most importantly, sympathize with any one who has the disease. I recommend it if you want a personal account of bi-polar.



4. Lizzie is courageous & heroic! Her memoir of a young woman struggling with bipolar disorder is not only brilliantly & creatively written, but it's incredibly inspiring!!!



5. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in the summer of 2007, at the age of 41 after being hospitalised. In the years prior, I struggled with depression, extreme emotional turmoil, and a precise feeling of not fitting in, of not feeling normal. After I was discharged from the hospital I sought out books that I knew to be out there regarding others and their experience with bipolar disorder to sort of get a handle on what I might be dealing up against. While Ms. Simon writes from the perspective of an intelligent, beautiful, talented young woman in the glow of her youth, I felt a resonance with her stories and encounters that make up "Detour". She visits with several other people she meets on a sort of mental health road trip and compares notes. Out of that came a dialog of the diffences, similarities, and ultimately the uniqueness of each person's bipolar disorder. If you or someone you love is struggling with an understanding of bipolar disorder, Lizzie Simon's book, "Detour: My Bipolar Road Trip in 4-D" is essential to fascilitating your awareness.