THE SURGEON'S KNOT

by Arthur Young ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 3, 1982

In contrast to his American counterparts in Grand Rounds fiction, Neil Aitken, a Glasgow doctor whose specialty is arterial fancywork, toils for National Health, both in Northern Hospital and ambulancing through Glasgow slums. But one night, after treating and chatting up the underclass, Neil takes an unusual call to the Nob Hill of Glasgow to treat the youngest daughter of 90-ish Lord Taggart, one of the city's noblest pioneers of industry: Helen Ross has taken a potentially fatal overdose which has caused mammoth internal damage, and Neil performs brilliantly before his chief, Charles Hamilton, an acquaintance of the family. So all sorts of good things are slated to come Neil's way, thanks to the gratitude of Helen's family (including young Nella, ""the Pixie"") and Charles' respect for Neil's ability. Neil, however, is determined to accept an American colleague's offer to move to the milk-and-honey medicine of Texas--despite the pulls of home: pitiful father Jock, crippled for 30 years, soon to die; weary mother Big Maisie, who has ""retreated to an emotion-proof dugout in life""; the probability of promotion; the Pixie; and the city of Glasgow itself, blistered with bulldozers, gangs of murderous youths, and rotting buildings. . . but ""the place you felt alive in. . . kept afloat by pride and guts. . . that had bred a self-respect in its people."" Spiked with Scottish slang and limp in its strenuous attempts to be racy and larky (""I was seated one day at an organ"")--yet, with two oozy operations and National Health details galore: a hard-working, fairly convincing novelty for medico-fiction fans eager to undertake a little overseas armchair travel.

Pub Date: Jan. 3, 1982

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1982

Categories: FICTION