No comments about Vulnerable Subjects: Ethics and Life Writing.

No comments about Ships of Mercy: The Remarkable Fleet Bringing Hope to the World's Forgotten Poor.

No comments about FIRE ON THE PRAIRIE: The Life and Times of Andrew Taylor Still, Founder of Osteopathic Medicine.

4 comments about Dr. Spock: An American Life.

1. Journalist and biographer Thomas Maier presents a candid portrait of one of the most famous child care advisors in America in Dr. Spock: An American Life, an informed and informative, 540-page biography that shows this public figure's human side, as well as his willingness to face down controversy, whether in the realm of raising children or in his stringent opposition to the Vietnam War. A detailed, involving, and evenhanded depiction, Dr. Spock: An American Life is very highly recommended reading.



2. I've been reading biographies lately and this one is the best I've read so far. I found it interesting and easy to read. I was impressed with the extensive research done by the author and I was impressed with how we are given an honest portrayal of Spock...the good points and the bad.

   Although we are given glimpses of the dark side of this famous man, I did not end up disliking him. In fact, it made me want to go out and reread his childcare book. It's weird, but in a way I respect his opinions more, knowing he was not perfect.

   I highly recommend this book!




3. My mother read Dr. Spock, as did I when I had my kids. He was not permissive and did not advise us to raise impolite poorly behaved children. Fortunately this book manages to convey this. Dr. Spock's legacy has been maligned and cheapened by ignorant people, most of whom never read the good Doctor. This book presents a full picture of the man in his weakness and strength. I think Spock would have been content to stand on the record. This book is long overdue. Thank you to Thomas Maier and thank you to Dr. Spock.



4. "Dr. Spock: An American Life" is a powerful story. In fact, once I got started, I couldn't put down Thomas Maier's book. The writing is crisp and to the point. At the same time Maier fills his book with wonderful details that brings Benjamin Spock to life.

   Maier does a terrific job of capturing the different facets of the doctor's life and personality. The author devotes a good part of his book to Spock's troubles with his children and his first wife. Yet "Dr.Spock" never demeans its subject.

   If you are curious about Benjamin Spock, or enjoy intriging stories...or just delight in good writing,read this book!

2 comments about Robert Wood Johnson -- The Gentleman Rebel.

1. The impact of the Johnson family -- and particularly the "gentleman rebel" at the center of Larry Foster's book -- on the community, the health care industry and society at large has been documented in a way that is illuminating, satisfying and inspiring. Attention to detail, the providing of context and respect for the subject, along with graceful writing, make this book a joy to read.



2. The usual authorized biography is worthy but not worthwhile; the author has traded access for freedom to write what he damned well pleases. In this case, Foster, though not writing an "approved" or subsidized book, has given up nothing -- he knew and genuinely liked his subject, despite having worked for him. Robert Wood Johnson, NOT the Johnson who just bought himself a professional foootball team, was both a gentleman and a rebel but he did establish for one of the premier American companies a credo which helped to build it and, even after his death, to keep it on the right course during the Tylenol crisis, a triumph of responsible capitalism -- and not incidentally of well-handled public relations . The author minimizes his own role in handling this potentially widespread and dangerous situation. The book is rare in its genre -- well written, humane, interesting, and valuable to anyone interested in top drawer American companies, the economy, public health, public service, the lives of the rich, and more.

No comments about Fever & Thirst: An American Doctor Among the Tribes of Kurdistan, 1835-1844.

No comments about Letters of a Civil War Surgeon.

No comments about Memories: My Life as an International Leader in Health, Suffrage, and Peace.

No comments about My Second Life: Living with Parkinson's Disease.

5 comments about No Laughing Matter.

1. This book is good it jumps around a little to much between chapters from Joseph Heller who had GBS in the early 80's and Speed Vogel his friend that really helped take care of allot of the things Joe couldn't take care of. It gives both meets perspectives. There was allot of good information obtained from the book and there was also some humor even though this is a bad situation to be in... I did benefit from reading this book. I have a friend who has GBS and I wanted to better understand how he and some others have recovered from it....



2. Heller was one of my all-time favorite writers, and his books never disappointed me. This book, written with his good friend Speed Vogel, is a description of Heller's medical ordeal.
   
   Heller had Guillain-Barre syndrome, which is like a temporary form of polio. The muscles in his body shut down leaving him paralyzed. Eventually, the muscles started to work again, but he had to go through a long, difficult rehab process. He had to learn to do everything he had done without thinking about it before he got sick. Vogel helped him through the process and they decided to write this book to describe the whole ordeal.
   
   The book is full of funny stories of these two men, and their other friends. It was great to see that he kept his amazing sense of humor throughout his illness. If you've enjoyed any of his other books, you should get a big kick out of this one too.



3. Not exactly a laughing matter, but certainly one presented with plenty of humor. Author Joseph Heller developed a nerve disease called Guillain-Barre after years of seeming good health, and later wrote a book (coauthored by his pal Speed Vogel) chronicling his declining health and his fight back to semi-normality.

   It was a day like any other, just before getting a divorce and starting a new novel (which became "God Knows"). But Joseph Heller found that his food tasted funny, his body felt abnormally heavy, and he was having problems putting on and removing clothing. He checked into a hotel, and sure enough -- he had had a problem. What's more, he had a nerve disease called Guillain-Barre, which could cause permanent paralysis.

   While his mind remained sharp and unusually witty, Heller's body became paralyzed. His pals Speed Vogel, Mario Puzo (of "Godfather" fame), Dustin Hoffman and Mel Brooks all clustered around to help their friend as he began to regain control of his life.

   The account is funny and kooky, full of eccentric people like Puzo and Brooks. But there are deeper undercurrents in "No Laughing Matter," in which the friends help keep Heller from sinking into a frenzy of displeasure and cabin fever. There are no gooey monologues about the power of love and friendship -- it would probably have made the authors gag, even if it didn't make the readers. But the accounts of an admittedly difficult-to-deal-with famous author being helped out, despite his eccentricity, is very touching.

   There is a lot of serious content, with Heller's decline in health and the details of his time in the hospital. (Constantly lying in a hospital bed, mostly paralyzed, unable to grip a pen and with a tube in his nose) But he manages to give a funny spin to almost everything in the book, including his encounters with Valerie Humphrey, a beautiful nurse who became his second wife, and media-shy Mario Puzo telling him how lucky he was to be sick and paralyzed, since he wouldn't be require do interviews. Half the book is Speed Vogel's voice; he offers an alternate, somewhat humbler viewpoint. He also gives more entertaining anecdotes such as Mel Brooks painting his "SNORE! SNORE! SNORE!" message on the wall, or the lobster dinner, or just arguing with Joe about the thirty-person dinner.

   Funnier and more heartwarming than most "disease diaries," this gives us two different viewpoints: The patient, and the loyal pal. Definitely an intriguing and interesting read.




4. NO LAUGHING MATTER is a very informative and entertaining piece of writing. Co-authored by Joseph Heller and Speed Vogel (who write alternating chapters) it details the effects of the rare debilitating affliction called Guillain-Barre syndrome. This autobiographical/biographical chronicle passes along a lot of information without once falling into obscure medical dullness.

   Guillain-Barre is a disease that attacks the central nervous system, rendering the victim completely paralyzed. Although what Heller contracted was a mild form of the disorder, in an extreme case mentioned a patient was only able to move their eyes. Recovery is possible from this disease; if it's caught early enough, the patient can be hooked up to a respirator if need be and then slowly rehabilitated. NO LAUGHING MATTER is two stories. The first is that of Joseph Heller the patient who goes from being in (seemingly) perfect health to being utterly bedridden in a matter of days. The second part of the tale is told by Speed Vogel, a friend of Heller, who took care of virtually all of his financial, legal and personal obligations.

   From reading some other reviews of the book, one might be under the impression that this is a light and fluffy feel-good story of friendship where one will be forced to read numerous passages on the deeper meanings of love and caring. People learning great life lessons by sacrificing much that they have purely in the name of camaraderie. Chicken soup for the soul and novocain for the brain. Fortunately, one couldn't be further from the truth. While the two authors obviously have a great fondness for each other, you won't find any obvious soliloquies on the healing power of friendship. What you will find are people who care a great deal, but aren't afraid to share a lot of good-natured abuse. While in sickness and on the road to recovery, this never feels false or sugarcoated. It's an honest account of what real friendships are made of.

   Despite the title, much of the book is laugh out loud funny. Heller may have been bedridden but he didn't lose any of his trademark wit. Celebrity cameos of everyone from Dustin Hoffman to Mario Puzo to Mel Brooks help to liven up an already interesting narrative. Both authors have a warm and engaging style of writing that makes even the more incomprehensible medical jargon understandable. The jokes are great and serve also to counterpoint the feelings of desperation and of loneliness.

   The book is extremely intriguing, though there are one or two sections that don't quite work. Heller was going through what appeared to be a fairly messy divorce and the legal proceedings got a little bit complicated. For a section, Heller even reproduces a few pages of the court transcripts in order to show his lawyer in the right. As justified as he may be in including these segments, they aren't nearly as interesting as the rest of the book and pale in comparison.

   NO LAUGHING MATTER shows us illness from two viewpoints. From Vogel we see the outward appearance of the disease and its effect on Heller. From Heller we experience the sickness firsthand. It's a fascinating dual look at the nature of the affliction. Well worth a read.




5. NO LAUGHING MATTER has some great moments. In places Joseph Heller demonstrated his ability to be funny and touching at the same time. The book was a great inspiration to me at a time when I needed the help it gave me. As the author of SOLOMON'S PORCH, a novel about a man with CIDP, the slow version of Guillain Barre', I was fascinated with this book about Joe Heller and his caretakers. Most of the material that I have read about GBS and CIDP focuses almost exclusively on the patient, but Mr. Heller wrote every other chapter of this book and had his friend, who became one of his caretakers, write the alternate chapters. At the time I read NO LAUGHING MATTER, I was beginning to formulate SOLOMON'S PORCH in my mind. NLM gave me some good ideas about structure.