by Harold Moroson & Murray Fisher ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 1998
A depressing but compelling chronicle of the multitude of mistakes that can, and do, occur regularly at hospitals across America, from a cancer researcher (with help from the man who was Alex Haley’s personal editor on Roots). People have heard enough hospital horror stories, either firsthand from friends and relatives or through headlines, to suspect that hospitals are not always all they’re cracked up to be. What emerges after reading Moroson’s book, though, is wonderment that hospital staffs ever cure anyone at all. Misdiagnoses, medication errors, hospital-transmitted infections, anesthesia blunders—all these and more occur on a fairly regular basis, according to Moroson’s research. Known as “adverse events,” these hospital bloopers result in temporary discomfort in the best-case scenarios and in death in the worst. According to Moroson, of the 34 million patients admitted to hospitals in America annually, 85,000 will die, 16,000 will be permanently disabled, and about 225,000 will suffer a lesser injury due to medical mistakes. And that’s just an educated estimate, because many malpractice suits require the parties to remain silent as part of the settlement. Since hospitals themselves are reluctant to divulge information about their mistakes, Moroson got most of his information from published summaries of malpractice actions, public records of malpractice jury verdicts, family members, and the few federal records concerning hospital safety that exist. Although the book is fairly listlike—Moroson generally opens a chapter with an overview and then lists a number of stories that prove his point—the stories are so incredible that they keep a reader turning the pages. One example: the patient who died after being injected with formaldehyde rather than spinal fluid because no one in the operating room labeled the spinal fluid container once the fluid had been temporarily removed from the patient’s body prior to surgery. Not for the faint-hearted or hypochondriac, this book should be an embarrassment to a profession whose code includes the words “First do no harm.” (30 b&w photos, not seen)
Pub Date: July 1, 1998
ISBN: 1-57544-072-5
Page Count: 304
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1998
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
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by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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