What Are You Reading This Summer of 15?

Transcription

1 What Are You Reading This Summer of 15?

2 In the spirit of fun in the sun, we thought we would find out what some of your colleagues are reading this summer. Take inspiration, add to your reading list, and let us know what books you re reading in the comments section.

3 The Wright Brothers, by David McCullough Simon & Schuster, 2015 I m only half way through this book. Right now they are trying to build a flying machine. I m eager to see how this works out for them. I like biographies of great achievers. They are inspiring, but not in the way I first imagined: they remind me that the true pleasure of achievement is in the striving. They all have a familiar pattern: the happiest, most exciting times occur before they are successful. Those moments when they are struggling, in debt, often penniless, but convinced that they are on to something those are the moments they seem most alive. After they succeed and the fame and fortune follows, it is usually downhill from there. Robert Boland, MD

4 At Day s Close, by A. Roger Ekirch W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2005 The book is an often surprising look at the fears, rituals, problems, and assignations historically attending nighttime. For anyone interested especially in sleep or anxiety disorders, this offers a window into some of their historical background. Greg Eghigian, PhD

5 Time Warped, by Claudia Hammond Harper Collins, 2013 I highly recommend this book, which delves into the mysteries of how we perceive time. For example, why does time seem to be going faster as one gets older and why when going to an unfamiliar place, it seems to take longer to get there than it does to come back. The book was so influential that we changed the way we ask questions in the SCID diagnostic interview. After reading how problematic people s sense of time intervals are, we changed how we frame the time intervals that are part and parcel of DSM-5 disorders. Instead of asking, During the past 6 months, have you been anxious and worried for more days than not? (which is almost impossible for people to determine accurately), we now have the interviewer ask, Since December 2014, have you been anxious and worried for more days than not? Michael B. First, MD

6 The Life Of Greece: The Story of Civilization by Will Durant (1939) An elegant tour of the ancient world that gave birth to modern times. Sad to say, human nature and our institutions have improved not a smidgen and the value of histories is still an open question. Pessimistic view: the only thing we learn from history is that we don't learn from history. Optimistic: only those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it. Mark Twain: history doesn't repeat itself, but it sure does rhyme. Reading Durant is thrilling and humbling. Allen Frances, MD

7 Do No Harm, by Henry Marsh Thomas Dunne Books, 2014 This fascinating book is essentially the author s thoughts and memories of a long career as a neurosurgeon. The book should resonate with any psychiatrist as many of the issues relate to our field as well, eg, the disconnection between neurobiology and humanity and the humility we all feel when presented with the complexities of the brain. Jon E. Grant, JD, MD, MPH

8 Triumph and Tragedy: Psychohistorical Decisions of Mahatma Gandhi, by Prakash N. Desai and Hyman L. Muslin Har-Anand, 1998 I am reading this magnum opus coauthored by the recently deceased Prakash N. Desai, MD in preparation for writing another set of eulogies for psychiatrists who have inspired. Gandhi's insistence on the liberation of the masses is surely applicable to the mentally ill, as well as the need for all of us to resist authority when necessary for the greater good. H. Steven Moffic, MD

9 The Plantagenets, by John Harvey William Collins Sons & Co., Ltd, 1981 I was at Oxford in England in April to attend a seminar titled Evidence 2015, an annual event to bring people up to date on progress in the Evidence-based Medicine movement. I m an Anglophile when it comes to evidence-based thinking so I go there to find out about it periodically. And while I was there, I decided to immerse myself in some English History. The book is about the reigns of the Plantagenets, who ruled from 1133 to The author is an unapologetic monarchist who really thinks having Kings and Queens govern is better for the people than having democracies and republics, because they can make bold decisions when indicated, and he thinks on balance they make more good ones than bad ones. He makes his case in the book. It has a lot of relevance to what s going on in the world today. David N. Osser, MD

10 Chemotherapy in Psychiatry, by Ross J. Baldessarini Springer, 2013 The author s take is to evaluate carefully the evidence base and conclude, more often than not, that the evidence is problematic or contradictory and it s hard to say what clinicians should do. Thus it s not as prescriptive as many psychopharmacology texts and might not be as satisfying for some in that it doesn t make that many firm recommendations. But it was extremely informative and clarified my understanding of a lot of contentious issues and without question I highly recommend reading it all the way through. The last chapter in particular, on the Status and Prospects for Psychopharmacology was brilliant and important, so much so that I have engaged Dr Baldessarini to be the keynote speaker at the upcoming 26th Annual Psychopharmacology Update of the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society to share it with the attendees. David N. Osser, MD

11 The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, by Marie Kondo Ten Speed Press, 2014 While downsizing to a studio apartment this summer, I found it necessary to "declutter" my belongings. After discovering this book and currently living a clutter-free life, I wished that I had done this much sooner! Kondo guides readers through the process of only keeping belongings that bring them joy and creating a living space that is a haven of items that bring happiness and a clear mind. Holly Peek, MD, MPH

12 Reading the Bible Again for the First Time, by Marcus J. Borg Harper San Francisco, 2001 This isn t beach reading, but it is a clearly-written and engaging exposition on the Bible as a human response to God. Prof. Borg argues that one need not read the Bible literally in order to believe in, and experience, the sacred, which he identifies with God. The subtitle of the book is telling: Taking the Bible Seriously but not Literally. Ronald W. Pies, MD

13 Middlemarch, by George Eliot Bibliophile Books, 1994 I have recently read this book (for the first time). In a depiction of village life in mid-nineteenth century England, Eliot presents a magnificent array of characters who remind us of the limitations of our personality categories. In the character of the physician, Tertius Lydgate, it also provides a fascinating picture of medicine in that era. James Phillips, MD

14 Louisa Meets Bear, by Lisa Gornick Sarah Crichton Books, 2015 This book is a clear favorite for summer reading. What is it that makes us human, that has us stutter step from one relationship to another? Here told in a collection of stories that weaves itself into a novel. Among the finest contemporary writing around. Lloyd I. Sederer, MD

15 Happy reading!