And Finally: Matters of Life and Death, from the bestselling author of DO NO HARM
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-08-08 01:16:47
- Update Date：2025-09-23
- Status：finish
- Author：Henry Marsh
- ISBN：1787331148
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Summary
As a neurosurgeon， I lived in a world filled with fear and suffering， death and cancer。 But rarely， if ever， did I think about what it would be like if what I witnessed at work every day happened to me。 This book is the story of how I became a patient myself。
As a retired brain surgeon， Henry Marsh thought he understood illness， but he was unprepared for the impact of his diagnosis of advanced cancer。 And Finally explores what happens when someone who has spent a lifetime on the frontline of life and death finds himself contemplating what might be his own death sentence。 As he navigates the bewildering transition from doctor to patient， he is haunted by past failures and projects yet to be completed， and frustrated by the inconveniences of illness and old age。 But he is also more entranced than ever by the mysteries of science and the brain， the beauty of the natural world and his love for his family。 Elegiac， candid， luminous and poignant， And Finally is ultimately not so much a book about death， but a book about life and what matters in the end。
As a retired brain surgeon， Henry Marsh thought he understood illness， but he was unprepared for the impact of his diagnosis of advanced cancer。 And Finally explores what happens when someone who has spent a lifetime on the frontline of life and death finds himself contemplating what might be his own death sentence。 As he navigates the bewildering transition from doctor to patient， he is haunted by past failures and projects yet to be completed， and frustrated by the inconveniences of illness and old age。 But he is also more entranced than ever by the mysteries of science and the brain， the beauty of the natural world and his love for his family。 Elegiac， candid， luminous and poignant， And Finally is ultimately not so much a book about death， but a book about life and what matters in the end。
Reviews
Books By Your Bedside
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Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review。I’ve ready the first two books by Henry Marsh - “Admissions: A Life in Brain Surgery” and “Do No Harm: Stories of Life， Death and Brain Surgery” - and thought they were exceptional so was thrilled to hear he’d written another。 Whilst the first two were more about his profession as a neurologist and neurosurgeon， this bois predominately about is cancer journey and that change from Docto Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review。I’ve ready the first two books by Henry Marsh - “Admissions: A Life in Brain Surgery” and “Do No Harm: Stories of Life， Death and Brain Surgery” - and thought they were exceptional so was thrilled to hear he’d written another。 Whilst the first two were more about his profession as a neurologist and neurosurgeon， this bois predominately about is cancer journey and that change from Doctor to Patient。 Whilst equally as informative， it doesn’t have the same tone to it and some bits are rather upsetting， especially if you’ve followed his story closely， it’s almost like it’s happening to a friend。I don’t feel comely comfortable reviewing this as simply a book - it is so much more than ‘just’ a book。 It documents his own advanced cancer diagnosis and is less about neurology and his profession。 It might not be for everyone。 If you have a similar story to me （I lost my dad in 2017 to oesophageal cancer and my uncle in 2020 to prostate cancer）， it may not be a comfortable book to read as he doesn’t pull any punches and he doesn’t sugar coat things。 I personally found it interesting to push through the discomfort and see cancer from a doctor-as-patient perspective。Much like the other two， there is a lot of medical terminology as well as scientific topics and philosophical thoughts。 I admit， some went over my head but it’s not surprising that a book like this would be full of technical speech。I read his previous books when I was awaiting a decision as to whether I would need brain surgery or not。 Luckily I didn’t， but my subsequent neurological diagnosis and years in and out of hospital has given me a deeper understanding and respect for neurologists and neurosurgeons。 The idea that you’re using your brain to learn about and fix the brain is fascinating to me。This book did feel a bit incoherent， more that he’s put his personal ramblings down on paper。 It jumps from one topic to another and back， some not obviously relevant， and it didn’t really have the flow of his previous one， but I suppose this is a more personal offering so has more of that stream-of-consciousness feel。It makes me sad to think this is likely to be his last book on the topic。 They’ve been a real comfort and source of information in my difficult health times。 。。。more
Nigel
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An interesting read that felt a little unfocussed。 Full review soon。
Paromjit
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'As a neurosurgeon， I lived in a world filled with fear and suffering， death and cancer。 But rarely， if ever， did I think about what it would be like if what I witnessed at work every day happened to me。 This book is the story of how I became a patient myself。'Henry Marsh writes a candid， reflective and human account of his life as a brain surgeon and his shock at becoming what he never envisaged being， a prostate cancer patient， after doing what doctors so often do， ignoring his symptoms for a 'As a neurosurgeon， I lived in a world filled with fear and suffering， death and cancer。 But rarely， if ever， did I think about what it would be like if what I witnessed at work every day happened to me。 This book is the story of how I became a patient myself。'Henry Marsh writes a candid， reflective and human account of his life as a brain surgeon and his shock at becoming what he never envisaged being， a prostate cancer patient， after doing what doctors so often do， ignoring his symptoms for a considerable length of time。 Having retired from his profession， although continuing to work in Ukraine and Nepal， at the age of 70， he had never considered that the state of his brain would be less than ideal， only to be confronted with the reality of a brain scan that revealed its true withered and aged state。 What makes this memoir worth reading is that for me Marsh does not shy away from the flaws and imperfections of his time as a neurosurgeon， the mistakes made， the failure to face up to truths， the self deceptions， and the lack of empathy he had with his patients， which he suggests he perhaps needed as it might have hindered his ability to operate to the best of his ability。Marsh reacts to his potential terminal cancer diagnosis as any ordinary human being might do， the fear and disbelief， he informs us of the classic theory stages， the oscillating between terror and denial， bargaining， anger， and with patients perhaps reaching the stage of acceptance。 He accepts he has been fortunate， he has lived a good long life， he has been blessed with good friends， a loving family， supported by his wife Kate， and he loves reading to his grandchildren。 As he goes to explore theories of consciousness， he notes their subjective nature， and being a man who does not believe in the afterlife， he concludes it is the present that is important and it is there to be lived to the last breath。 His details of his experience of cancer treatment are a true revelation， the hormone treatment， chemical castration， radiotherapy and the side affects suffered。Whilst parts of the memoir meander a little， I have no doubt many readers will find Marsh's thoughts， reflections and philosophical exploration both eye opening and helpful。 He highlights that painful process of ageing and dying can be done well or badly， he acknowledges his cancer came at a time when he had lived a life， so many of his young patients did not have that to fall back on。 He examines the debates for assisted dying and the national obstacles that prevent a dignified and peaceful death being available to its citizens。 Poignantly， Marsh tells us that it is only in old age and close to death that he comes to understand more about himself and his past。 A memoir that I recommend highly。 Many thanks 。to the publisher for an ARC。 。。。more
Louise
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