Do No Harm

Stories of Life, Death, and Brain Surgery

By: Henry Marsh

Narrated by: Jim Barclay

Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

With compassion and candor, leading neurosurgeon Henry Marsh reveals the fierce joy of operating, the profoundly moving triumphs, the harrowing disasters, the haunting regrets, and the moments of black humor that characterize a brain surgeon's life. If you believe that brain surgery is a precise and exquisite craft practiced by calm and detached surgeons, this gripping, brutally honest account will make you think again.

©2015 Henry Marsh (P)2015 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Neurosurgery has met its Boswell in Henry Marsh. Painfully honest about the mistakes that can 'wreck' a brain, exquisitely attuned to the tense and transient bond between doctor and patient, and hilariously impatient of hospital management, Marsh draws us deep into medicine's most difficult art and lifts our spirits. It's a superb achievement." (Ian McEwan)

"His love for brain surgery and his patients shines through, but the specialty - shrouded in secrecy and mystique when he entered it - has now firmly had the rug pulled out from under it. We should thank Henry Marsh for that." ( The Times)

"When a book opens like this: 'I often have to cut into the brain and it is something I hate doing' - you can't let it go, you have to read on, don't you? Brain surgery, that's the most remote thing for me, I don't know anything about it, and as it is with everything I'm ignorant of, I trust completely the skills of those who practice it, and tend to forget the human element, which is failures, misunderstandings, mistakes, luck and bad luck, but also the non-professional, everyday life that they have. Do No Harm: Stories of Life, Death and Brain Surgery by Henry Marsh reveals all of this, in the midst of life-threatening situations, and that's one reason to read it; true honesty in an unexpected place. But there are plenty of others - for instance, the mechanical, material side of being, that we also are wire and strings that can be fixed, not unlike cars and washing machines, really." (Karl Ove Knausgaard, Financial Times)

The life of a neurosurgeon

This is a book that documents the daily life of a neurosurgeon. What I liked about it is that it gave me what I expected. I had always wondered how doctors handled the stresses of uncertainty that decide the life or death of their patients and how they view their failures and successes. The book does these question, and many more, more than justice. The story Dr. Marsh tells in this book is honest and never-boring.

Loved it

You have to be in the medical field to love it and i am and I do. I laughed and I was a little sad too. I understand the fact that all hospitals are crowded,even in the UK. We also fight for rooms for our pts. and have postponed surgeries. We have to face the anger of the patients family and the tears. Sounds like this Dr. was a very skilled brain surgeon. There are times when we must accept, you just can not help someone. This was a powerful book and I loved it.

Great for someone with a medical background

I enjoyed this a lot & commend him for his honesty. I am not sure how someone with no medical background will react to hearing about failed equipment & the useless hours we now spend trying to find a result buried in an electronic chart that was supposed to help but hasn't. The real truth he tells is vitally important. We try our best but all doctors & medical providers are human and just can't be perfect. But it is a great look into the health care system if you'd like to know.

Good insight into the life of a Neuro-surgion.

Where does Do No Harm rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I have listened to hundreds of audio books and I would put this one in the top 10-15.

What did you like best about this story?

The humanizing of the Doctor.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I felt a great deal of empathy for the Doctor's experiences.

Wonderful

You might need some kind of hospital employment to truly appreciate this book. All the stories are great and the PACS (radiology computer) password forgetting episode is hilarious (and yet so common).
The stories about what was covered in the documentary film are stunning and it's always amazing to learn of all the perseverance and otherwise selfless work in the Ukraine and his own hospital

What is eloquent brain to surgeon Henry Marsh?

As a boy neurosurgeon Henry Marsh observed a life-threatening brain surgery as the surgeon prowls for a nefarious aneurysm threatening life. Little did he know, he would become a top neurosurgeon (like the one he had observed).

Dr. Henry Marsh says you will make mistakes and live with the consequences---meaning patients you crippled, maimed and put in a dirty/early grave. Do No Harm is descriptive caramel within as he describes “eloquent brain” with its’ jelly consistency.

Each failure is remembered and thus many neurosurgeons’ lives are transfixed by rigmarole periods of silence when auspicious despair slaps in hard---like a hurricane pouncing on a lone mobile home. Buy, absorb and transmit. Distingué!

Appreciate your doctors.

Would you listen to Do No Harm again? Why?

I would listen again if faced with brain surgery. He made it seem safe if you had a knowledgeable Neurosurgeon. The interaction between doctor and patient was interesting. It was good to see how blessed we are in America with good clean hospitals.

What about Jim Barclay’s performance did you like?

What dedication he had to his profession and how much he enjoyed it.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, don't try to listen to over 9 hours in one sitting. You need time to digest what went on.

Great listen!!

Having worked as a nurse on a neuro med/surg unit, this book was very interesting and relatable for me but it was also so well explained that it would be just as interesting to someone with no medical background.
Mr. Marsh was a superb and enjoyable narrator adding a lot of personal flair to his own recollections of his medical career.
This really is a fascinating listen. Well worth the credit!

some English narrators are very pretentious

however as the book continued the pretentious and spurious pronunciation with an annoying English accent seem to fit the main character of the book as the book went on

Gripping Account

Intriguing story. An expose on the mind of a neurosurgeon. I enjoyed the writing, and I enjoyed The narration. It was very heart wrenching at times.