THE UNCERTAIN ART Thoughts on a Life in Medicine

A surgeon writes about subjects related to medicine, his "uncertain art." He discourses on his experiences with acupuncture, the placebo effect, electroshock therapy, the training of doctors, and the myths of irregularity. Narrator Michael Prichard turns the timely information into something like a conversational chat, speaking without haste or loss of equanimity. Prichard dominates the technical terms, making words like "psychosociological" and "periaquaductal" seem everyday. His avuncular voice brings the disparate ideas into a coherent production suitable for all listeners, not just science aficionados. He reads the last chapter, a collection of letters to him from a dying patient, as though HE were the man waiting for a heart transplant and speaking from his soul. J.A.H. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2008]