Vendor
	Mohrbooks Literary Agency Annelie Geissler
Categories
Memoirs

GRAY MATTERS

Theodore H. Schwartz

A Biography of Brain Surgery

A popular biography of brain surgery, by one of its preeminent practitioners.

We've all heard the phrase "it's not brain surgery." But what exactly is brain surgery? It's a profession that is barely a hundred years old and profoundly connects two human beings, but few know how it works, or its history. How did early neurosurgeons come to understand the human brain - an extraordinarily complex organ that controls everything we do, and yet at only three pounds is so fragile? And how did this incredibly challenging and lifesaving specialty emerge? In this warm, rigorous, and deeply insightful book, Dr. Theodore H. Schwartz explores what it's like to hold the scalpel, wield the drill, extract a tumor, fix a bullet hole, and remove a blood clot - when every second can mean life or death. Drawing from the author's own cases, plus media, sports, and government archives, this seminal work delves into all the brain-related topics that have long-consumed public curiosity, like what really happened to JFK, President Biden's brain surgery, and the NFL's management of CTE. Dr. Schwartz also surveys the field's latest incredible advances and discusses the philosophical questions of the unity of the self and the existence of free will. A neurosurgeon as well as a professor of neurosurgery at Weill Cornell Medical Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital, one of the busiest and most highly ranked neurosurgery centers in the world, Dr. Schwartz tells this story like no one else could. Told through anecdote and clear explanation, this is the ultimate cultural and scientific history of a literally mind-blowing human endeavor, one that cuts to the core of who we are. THEODORE H. SCHWARTZ, MD, is the David and Ursel Barnes Endowed Professor of Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery at Weill Cornell Medical Center at New York Presbyterian Hospital, one of the busiest and most highly ranked neurosurgery centers in the world. He has published over five hundred scientific articles and chapters on neu-rosurgery, and has lectured around the world - from Bogotá to Vienna to Mumbai - on new, minimally invasive surgical techniques that he helped develop. He also runs a basic science laboratory devoted to epilepsy research. He studied philosophy and literature at Harvard.

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Book Published 2024-08-13 by Dutton Books

Comments

An exciting and engaging romp around the history, innerworkings, and near limitless potential of the human brain. If you like Mary Roach's genre of immersive storytelling then you will love this view from the inside of the world of brain surgery. An outstanding read, and I highly recommend to brain surgeons and non-brain surgeons alike!

UK: Oneworld ; Chinese (Simpl.): United Sky Media

Blending personal experiences from the operating room with neuroscience's historical roots and contemporary examples, Dr. Theodore H. Schwartz gives readers a captivating glimpse into the high-stakes, emotionally charged world of brain surgery. A riveting read that unveils the humanity, history, and science behind the scalpel.

An informative study of modern brain surgery. Mixing expertise with storytelling, Schwartz provides a remarkable account of a crucial but misunderstood field.

Neurosurgeon Schwartz's excellent debut intersperses details about the history of brain surgery with background on what it's like to perform the procedure.Sweeping and consistently captivating, this impresses.

If you are at all curious about the brain or the surgeons who operate on it, Gray Matters is a must read and Dr. Theodore Schwartz is the perfect guide, a master brain surgeon and superbly talented writer. I have not read a better biography of our shared profession, and in Schwartz's talented hands, the most enigmatic 3 1/2 pounds of tissue in the known universe comes to light in remarkable and revelatory ways.

A fascinating and wide-ranging account of what neurosurgery is really about - the past, present and future.

With equal doses compassion, humor, and narrative skill, Schwartz creates a spellbinding account of what goes through the brain of a top neurosurgeon staring into the deep mysteries of his patients' brains. A must read for anyone who has ever had a brain.