Arnold van de Laar is a surgeon in the Slotervaart Hospital in Amsterdam, specialising in laparoscopic surgery. Born in 1969 in the Dutch town of 's-Hertogenbosch, van de Laar became fascinated by how the human body works in school biology lessons and went on to study medicine at the Belgian University of Leuven. Having travelled the world - the Himalayas, Bhutan, Tibet, Nepal, Kashmir, and extensively in Africa - van de Laar took his first job as general surgeon on the Caribbean Island of Sint Maarten. He started writing pieces on surgical history in the Dutch medical journal Nederlands Tijdschrift voor Heelkunde in 2009. He now lives in Amsterdam with his wife and two children where, a true Dutchman, he cycles to work every day. This is his first book.
This is history with a surgeon's touch: deft, incisive and
sometimes excruciatingly bloody . . . A fascinating combination of
art, medical science and - still - daring butchery
*The Sunday Times*
Utterly eccentric and riveting
*Mail on Sunday*
Irresistible . . . Van de Laar renders complex surgical procedures
not only understandable, but also immensely entertaining . . . A
lot of fun
*The Times*
[A] fascinating history of surgery . . . eye-opening and,
frequently, eye-watering . . . a book that invites readers to peer
up the bottoms of kings, into the souls of rock stars and down the
ear canals of astronauts
*The Daily Telegraph, 5* review*
Fascinating . . . a brisk but revealing tour of the human body.
Each story shines a light on the wonders and weaknesses of our
biology, and on the science we have used to treat it
*Irish Independent*
Fascinating . . . The author's sense of humour is as sharp as his
scapel
*Spectator*
In this witty chronicle, surgeon Arnold van de Laar dissects
thousands of years' worth of remarkably gruesome stories. From
anaesthetic-free amputations and bloodletting to Albert Einstein's
aneurysm, these are key insights into the cut and thrust of
medicine
*Nature*
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