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Reviews tagging 'War'
The Facemaker: A Visionary Surgeon's Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I by Lindsey Fitzharris
45 reviews
riddikulus25's review
dark
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Violence
mayukiiq's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, War, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Death
jhbandcats's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
5.0
An extraordinary history of the doctor who perfected plastic surgery and facial reconstruction on WWI soldiers whose faces had been destroyed. Dr Harold Gillies didn’t know much about facial reconstruction when he first began trying to save patients from a lifetime of isolation and depression caused by the stigma of facial disfigurement. He came to pioneer new methods of surgery that not only saved soldiers’ physical lives but their emotional lives as well.
For soldiers with mangled faces whose fiancées left them or whose children ran away screaming in terror, Dr Gillies was a savior. He suffered many failures as he was learning along the way but they were outstripped by his successes. He went on to perform facial reconstruction in WWII, working in private practice in times of peace. His two books on plastic surgery of the face are still valuable.
Lindsey Fitzharris gives an overview of the wartime medical complex on the Continent and its expansion to England, and shows how Gillies continued to grow his knowledge as he did all he could to return his patients to lives as normal as possible. An excellent medical history.
For soldiers with mangled faces whose fiancées left them or whose children ran away screaming in terror, Dr Gillies was a savior. He suffered many failures as he was learning along the way but they were outstripped by his successes. He went on to perform facial reconstruction in WWII, working in private practice in times of peace. His two books on plastic surgery of the face are still valuable.
Lindsey Fitzharris gives an overview of the wartime medical complex on the Continent and its expansion to England, and shows how Gillies continued to grow his knowledge as he did all he could to return his patients to lives as normal as possible. An excellent medical history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical trauma, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, War, Addiction, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, and Death
julesandjude's review
dark
emotional
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Fesselndes Buch über die Anfänge der plastischen Chirurgie
"Der Horror der frühen Chirurgie" erzählt die Geschichte des bahnbrechenden plastischen Chirurgen Harold Gillies, der sein Leben der Rekonstruktion der Gesichter der verletzten Soldaten widmete, die er während des Ersten Weltkriegs behandelte. Es ist ein erhellendes und teils erschütterndes Buch über die Anfänge der plastischen Chirurgie, den medizinischen Fortschritt und den Ersten Weltkrieg, erzählt durch berührende menschliche Geschichten.
Harold Gillies führte ein bemerkenswertes Leben, das die Grenzen der Chirurgie verschob und das Leben so vieler Menschen veränderte.
Er hatte eine bemerkenswerte Hingabe an seine Arbeit. Schon zu Beginn des Krieges erkannte er, wie schlecht die Wunden im Gesicht behandelt wurden und welche Folgen dies für die Soldaten hatte. Er setzte sich unermüdlich dafür ein, diesen Männern zu helfen und gründete ein spezielles Krankenhaus für Gesichtsverletzungen und deren Wiederherstellung.
Auch erkannte Gillies, dass nicht nur die Rekonstruktion an sich von Bedeutung war, sondern dass ebenso ein multidisziplinäres Team erforderlich war, um die Arbeit zum Erfolg zu führen. Er beschäftigte Chirurgen, Ärzte, Zahnärzte, Radiologen, Künstler, Bildhauer, Maskenbildner und Fotografen, die alle gemeinsam an der Rekonstruktion mitwirkten bzw. im Falle der Künstler und Fotografen die Arbeit dokumentierten. Einige dieser Kunstwerke und Fotografien sind auch heute noch erhalten.
Insgesamt war "Der Horror der frühen Chirurgie" ein aufschlussreiches Buch über einen faszinierenden Mann, auch wenn in der Erzählung der Fokus manchmal zu sehr von ihm und seinen Leistungen abdriftet. Trotzdem eine gut geschriebene Geschichte über die Brutalität des Ersten Weltkriegs, den Schaden, den er an den Körpern der Männer anrichtete und wie ein Pionier der plastischen Chirurgie lebensverändernde Arbeit leistete, indem er die Gesichter ehemaliger oder aktueller Soldaten rekonstruierte. Es ist so gut geschrieben, dass man manchmal fast vergisst, dass man ein Sachbuch liest.
Jeden, der sich für die Geschichte der Medizin interessiert, zu empfehlen.
"Der Horror der frühen Chirurgie" erzählt die Geschichte des bahnbrechenden plastischen Chirurgen Harold Gillies, der sein Leben der Rekonstruktion der Gesichter der verletzten Soldaten widmete, die er während des Ersten Weltkriegs behandelte. Es ist ein erhellendes und teils erschütterndes Buch über die Anfänge der plastischen Chirurgie, den medizinischen Fortschritt und den Ersten Weltkrieg, erzählt durch berührende menschliche Geschichten.
Harold Gillies führte ein bemerkenswertes Leben, das die Grenzen der Chirurgie verschob und das Leben so vieler Menschen veränderte.
Er hatte eine bemerkenswerte Hingabe an seine Arbeit. Schon zu Beginn des Krieges erkannte er, wie schlecht die Wunden im Gesicht behandelt wurden und welche Folgen dies für die Soldaten hatte. Er setzte sich unermüdlich dafür ein, diesen Männern zu helfen und gründete ein spezielles Krankenhaus für Gesichtsverletzungen und deren Wiederherstellung.
Auch erkannte Gillies, dass nicht nur die Rekonstruktion an sich von Bedeutung war, sondern dass ebenso ein multidisziplinäres Team erforderlich war, um die Arbeit zum Erfolg zu führen. Er beschäftigte Chirurgen, Ärzte, Zahnärzte, Radiologen, Künstler, Bildhauer, Maskenbildner und Fotografen, die alle gemeinsam an der Rekonstruktion mitwirkten bzw. im Falle der Künstler und Fotografen die Arbeit dokumentierten. Einige dieser Kunstwerke und Fotografien sind auch heute noch erhalten.
Insgesamt war "Der Horror der frühen Chirurgie" ein aufschlussreiches Buch über einen faszinierenden Mann, auch wenn in der Erzählung der Fokus manchmal zu sehr von ihm und seinen Leistungen abdriftet. Trotzdem eine gut geschriebene Geschichte über die Brutalität des Ersten Weltkriegs, den Schaden, den er an den Körpern der Männer anrichtete und wie ein Pionier der plastischen Chirurgie lebensverändernde Arbeit leistete, indem er die Gesichter ehemaliger oder aktueller Soldaten rekonstruierte. Es ist so gut geschrieben, dass man manchmal fast vergisst, dass man ein Sachbuch liest.
Jeden, der sich für die Geschichte der Medizin interessiert, zu empfehlen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, Medical content, Blood, and Gore
sarahbythebook's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
"Don't worry, sonny. You'll be alright and have as good a face as most of us before we're finished with you."
Dr. Harold Gillies would become a leader in the field of facial reconstructive surgery during its infancy under the dark clouds of World War I, and the world as a whole was better for him.
A kind and charismatic doctor, Harold Gillies would work endlessly to restore form and function to his patient's faces, recognizing the psychological impact of a destroyed face. In a very real way, the wounds soldiers received from bullets or shrapnel or civilians from fire and accidents lost their identities when they lost their most recognizable features. He also had a humility all too often lacking from those at the heads of their profession. Gillies recognized when his own knowledge fell short, enlisting the aid of dentists, artists, and many other skilled men and women to bring some amount of peace and confidence to the people whom he served.
His kindness did not end after the war, as author Lindsey Fitzharris demonstrates through the words of those who knew him. Gillies regularly was struggling financially because he hated discussing it with his patients and would provide steep discounts to those who needed his help. Despite the lack of financial gain, Gillies was eventually recognized by the British government for his contributions to the war, but more importantly, he was loved and remembered fondly by those who benefited under his scalpel.
The most moving story that Fitzharris includes doesn't even take place during the war, but after. Gillies' lack of prejudice in helping a trans man medically transition is moving and discredits any theories that everyone was transphobic at the time. He stood by his patient even after he was unwillingly outed. All in all, Harold Gillies seems like a descent human being first and foremost and a brilliant plastic surgeon second.
"The science of healing stood battle with the science of destroying."
The strides that Gillies and the team he assembled made in plastic surgery was brought about from horrible necessity. The First World War was unlike anything anyone in Europe had seen before despite its history of military conflicts.
As a historian, I focused on WWI, and as a teacher, I always tried to stress the importance of this war as the first real scientific war. The world saw chemical warfare, advanced war machinery, and advances in medical sciences at such a rapid pace, it was shocking. While I had focused in the past more on the weapons created, Fitzharris highlights in The Facemaker just one category of medical advances, though there are nods to the development of early psychiatry and the amazing progress made in practices like blood transfusions.
War is a tragedy no matter how it is examined, but Fitzharris does a masterful job showing off the progress that came out of trauma and the advances made possible because of the mass casualties, specifically in facial reconstruction. I'm so glad I read this book despite the fact that I generally don't do well with medical histories. (I'm specifically thinking of The Butchering Art by the same author).
If you have any history in medical histories, war histories, or just plain good and accessible nonfiction, I could not recommend The Facemaker highly enough.
Dr. Harold Gillies would become a leader in the field of facial reconstructive surgery during its infancy under the dark clouds of World War I, and the world as a whole was better for him.
A kind and charismatic doctor, Harold Gillies would work endlessly to restore form and function to his patient's faces, recognizing the psychological impact of a destroyed face. In a very real way, the wounds soldiers received from bullets or shrapnel or civilians from fire and accidents lost their identities when they lost their most recognizable features. He also had a humility all too often lacking from those at the heads of their profession. Gillies recognized when his own knowledge fell short, enlisting the aid of dentists, artists, and many other skilled men and women to bring some amount of peace and confidence to the people whom he served.
His kindness did not end after the war, as author Lindsey Fitzharris demonstrates through the words of those who knew him. Gillies regularly was struggling financially because he hated discussing it with his patients and would provide steep discounts to those who needed his help. Despite the lack of financial gain, Gillies was eventually recognized by the British government for his contributions to the war, but more importantly, he was loved and remembered fondly by those who benefited under his scalpel.
The most moving story that Fitzharris includes doesn't even take place during the war, but after. Gillies' lack of prejudice in helping a trans man medically transition is moving and discredits any theories that everyone was transphobic at the time. He stood by his patient even after he was unwillingly outed. All in all, Harold Gillies seems like a descent human being first and foremost and a brilliant plastic surgeon second.
"The science of healing stood battle with the science of destroying."
The strides that Gillies and the team he assembled made in plastic surgery was brought about from horrible necessity. The First World War was unlike anything anyone in Europe had seen before despite its history of military conflicts.
As a historian, I focused on WWI, and as a teacher, I always tried to stress the importance of this war as the first real scientific war. The world saw chemical warfare, advanced war machinery, and advances in medical sciences at such a rapid pace, it was shocking. While I had focused in the past more on the weapons created, Fitzharris highlights in The Facemaker just one category of medical advances, though there are nods to the development of early psychiatry and the amazing progress made in practices like blood transfusions.
War is a tragedy no matter how it is examined, but Fitzharris does a masterful job showing off the progress that came out of trauma and the advances made possible because of the mass casualties, specifically in facial reconstruction. I'm so glad I read this book despite the fact that I generally don't do well with medical histories. (I'm specifically thinking of The Butchering Art by the same author).
If you have any history in medical histories, war histories, or just plain good and accessible nonfiction, I could not recommend The Facemaker highly enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Medical content, War, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Vomit and Ableism
peachani's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, War, Gore, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror and Medical trauma
Minor: Body shaming, Vomit, Bullying, and Suicidal thoughts
ehmannky's review
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
A really fascinating nonfiction book about the dawn of plastic surgery. It honestly made me think differently about the entire field. I think Fitzharris did a good job balancing the idea of this man being a true gamechanger in his field without painting him as an isolated genius who didn't need/want to rely on anyone. Gillies honestly just seemed like a really rad dude all around.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, War, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Ableism
haylethal's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Medical trauma
wildestdreams's review
dark
informative
medium-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, War, Gore, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
malsguth's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence