Doctors

The men and women who shaped the world of medicine are not, as often thought, a few heroic individuals, possessing superhuman talents. In this brilliant collection of linked biographies, renowned Yale surgeon and medical historian Sherwin B. Nuland reveals that these medical pioneers are sometimes flawed, often brilliant, but always very human.

Through these biographical accounts, Nuland also explores groundbreaking events in medicine, from the origins of the Hippocratic oath to the discovery of germs to the first attempts at organ transplantation. Accompanying Nuland’s fascinating narrative are beautiful woodcuts, photographs, and paintings of significant medical events and individuals by artists such as Rembrandt, Michelangelo and John Singer Sargent.