Bethune

by Roderick Stewart

210 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1975

Reviews

[Tom Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was attracted to this biography too find out more about the Canadian doctor and innovator that had a Detroit office on Selden early in his career. Part rootless roué, he invented the Bethune rub shears still in use today and was reckless in trying to advance surgical methods to fight the tuberculosis he himself suffered from. Some patients he thus saved; some died under his knife. As a budding socialist he was caught up in the proto-Communistic anti-fascist fervor of the early 1930s ending up in Madrid supporting the fight against Franco. There he developed frontline battlefield medicine techniques like mobile operating stations and blood services further developed by many services in WWII. This part of his career found him with Chinese defending against the Japanese invaders where his tireless and selfless activities led to his own death.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you know nothing about Norman Bethune then you should read this book. According to the fly leaf he is among the most famous and admired in the world, yet he is little known in his native land (Canada). He was not recognized in Canada for his accomplishments until relations with China embarrassed Canada into acknowledging him in the 1960's. He was without doubt a communist which is why Canadian governments refused to recognize him earlier. The book is not always a breeze to read because it is a narrative of his life, as told in interviews with people who knew him, interspersed with excerpts from letters he wrote. However, neither is it tedious, and therefore I recommend it to anyone who wants to learn a bit more about this heroic man.