BOOK REVIEW |
An Essential Medical Miscellany. Ayan Panja. Published by RSM Press Ltd, 2005. ISBN 1-85315-631-0. Price: £12.95 (hardback). 124 pp.
Medicine can be a very sombre business so every so often it's nice to read a light-hearted book that is not mentally demanding or in any way academic. Such a book is An Essential Medical Miscellany, which is really a randomly presented hotchpotch of medical facts. Some of the facts are more serious than others. The General Medical Council's Duties of a Doctor is not likely to raise much of a smile, but finding out that the man who invented cornflakes was not only a surgeon called Kellogg but that he invented them to prevent the urge to masturbate will surely liven up many a breakfast table!The author qualified in 1999 and is a partner in a medical practice in London. As a relatively newly qualified doctor he probably has yet to have had the cynical gene inserted and so is still able to present funny material in a very readable way. He targets an audience of people who read in the loo, who have friends who are hypochondriacs and anyone with an interest in medicine. As such the book meets the requirements of most of the population of the country.
Each medical fact is presented in a few lines in no particular order. Thus, the reader travels from testicular cancer to the types of intravenous fluid given in hospital. The facts are about anatomy, medical practice and famous people. Did you know that Sugar Ray Robinson, Harry Secombe and Elizabeth Taylor were or are diabetics or that Napoleon and Marilyn Monroe were both insomniacs?
The text is highly readable. Although the facts are short, the book has an addictive quality. It is excellent for picking up and putting down but could also be finished in one go on a train journey. I could not detect any errors but then my knowledge of some of the areas covered is sadly lacking.
The book meets an audience's need for an amusing pocket book. As such it would be ideal as a stocking filler for Christmas or for anyone entering pub quizzes or playing Trivial Pursuit. A scientific must-have textbook it is not but it goes a fair way to relieving the stress of modern medical life. I think it is worth at least three and maybe four stars depending on how much humour you need injecting into your life.
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