THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER: an uplifting account of hope and healing by GP Gavin Francis 'I cannot think of anybody - patient or doctor - who will not be helped by reading this short and profound book' - Henry Marsh 'Such a wise, gentle, quietly hopeful book. Exactly what I needed' - Rachel Clarke 'A lovely little book' - Michael Rosen When it comes to illness, sometimes the end is just the beginning. Recovery and convalescence are words that exist at the periphery of our lives - until we are forced to contend with what they really mean. Here, GP and writer Gavin Francis explores how - and why - we get better, revealing the many shapes recovery takes, its shifting history and the frequent failure of our modern lives to make adequate space for it. Characterised by Francis's beautiful prose and his view of medicine as 'the alliance of science and kindness', Recovery is a book about a journey that most of us never intend to make. Along the way, he unfolds a story of hope, transformation, and the everyday miracle of healing.

A short, uplifting account of hope and healing by the author of Adventures in Human Being

About the Author
Gavin Francis has worked across four continents as a surgeon, emergency physician, medical officer with the British Antarctic Survey and latterly as a GP; he has described the pandemic response of 2020 as the most intense period of his twenty-year career in medicine. He's the author of the Sunday Times bestseller Adventures in Human Being, Shapeshifters, and Intensive Care. He also writes for the Guardian, The Times, the London Review of Books and Granta.

Reviews
Wise and thoughtful ... this book is a practical guide to recovery from illness as well as a meditation on the practice of medicine ... I cannot think of anybody - patient or doctor - who will not be helped by reading this short and profound book -- Henry Marsh * New Statesman *
A lovely little book -- Michael Rosen * Front Row *
Wonderful -- Anil Seth, author * Being You *
Massively healing -- Sara Sheridan * Scottish Field *
Such a wise, gentle, quietly hopeful book. Exactly what I needed -- Rachel Clarke, author of Breathtaking and Your Life In My Hands
Francis offers hope and a rare and precious quiet form of consolation -- Emily Mayhew * Observer *
Heartfelt and persuasively argued ... Filled with compassion and warmth, the book provides both insight and succour -- Ian Critchley * Sunday Times *
Excellent ... could not be more timely ... even if you are not at present ill, it is worth reading this book because the gentle guidance it gives is actually applicable to being healthy. There are things we can do that make life, even a life without pain or fatigue or anxiety, richer -- Stuart Kelly * Scotsman *
Humane and thoughtful. Combining personal reminiscence, hard science and history, it explores the architecture of convalescence, rest, treatments and placebos, the healing power of nature and the transformative impact a sick note can have -- Emma Beddington * Observer *
Sparkling ... uplifting * Independent *
A concise and deeply felt treatise on how, faced with inevitable illness and finitude, we might better live and how medicine might help others better life * The Lancet *
The book really shines ... it is worth reading this book because the gentle guidance it gives is actually applicable to being healthy * Yorkshire Post *
Short but sagacious ... never has the publication of a book been more timely and welcome * On-Magazine *



Book Information
ISBN 9781800810488
Author Gavin Francis
Format Paperback
Page Count 144
Imprint Wellcome Collection
Publisher Profile Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 110g
Dimensions(mm) 190mm * 110mm * 14mm