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The Cape Doctor
Beginning in Cork, Ireland, the novel recounts Jonathan Mirandus Perry’s journey from daughter to son in order to enter medical school and provide for family, but Perry soon embraced the new-found freedom of living life as a man. From brilliant medical student in Edinburgh and London to eligible bachelor and quick-tempered physician in Cape Town, Dr. Perry thrived. When he befriended the aristocratic Cape Governor, the doctor rose to the pinnacle of society, before the two were publicly accused of a homosexual affair that scandalized the colonies and nearly cost them their lives.
E. J. Levy’s enthralling novel, inspired by the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry, brings this captivating character vividly alive.
E. J. Levy’s enthralling novel, inspired by the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry, brings this captivating character vividly alive.
Hardcover
First published June 1, 2021
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About the author
E.J. Levy
9 books89 followersEJ Levy’s debut novel, THE CAPE DOCTOR (Little Brown), was named a NEW YORK TIMES Editors’ Choice book, one of Barnes & Noble’s Best Books of Summer, and won a 2022 Colorado Book Award. A French edition was published by L'Olivier in 2023 and won the 2024 Prix Libr'a Nous for Foreign Fiction. Her story collection, LOVE, IN THEORY, won a Flannery O’Connor Award and GLCA New Writers Award for Fiction; KIRKUS named it a Best Indie Book of the Year. Levy’s anthology, TASTING LIFE TWICE: Literary Lesbian Fiction by New American Writers, won a Lambda Literary Award. Her work has appeared in THE NEW YORK TIMES, THE PARIS REVIEW, KENYON REVIEW, THE WASHINGTON POST, BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS, ORION, and THE NATION, and has been twice named among Distinguished Stories in BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 398 reviews
May 2, 2021
I loved the premise of this story, inspired by the real life Dr. James Miranda Barry, who was discovered upon his death to be a woman. The story starts in the early 19th century, when James is actually Margaret Buckley. In the book, James Barry becomes Jonathan Perry
Jonathan’s education at the University of Edinburgh is much more than just medical
studies. He learns how to be a man of rank - to have the confidence, and oftentimes, arrogance of a man, but also how to take part in society.
I appreciated Levy’s ability to give us a detailed time and place. I really enjoyed Perry’s attitude towards medicine - common sense based in an era when medicine more often killed than cured. In fact, much of her time in Cape Town was spent trying to stop druggists from selling fake medicines for profit.
I will admit to getting a wee bit bored with the repeated references to her monthlies and the tactics necessary to hide the evidence. I was more questioning how she hid the more often need to urinate.
As someone who has often thanked God to have been born when I was, I fully understood Jonathan’s need to consistently put brain ahead of heart. More than once, she had to make the decision to maintain the facade rather than opt for love. “That I had to give up the second greatest love of my life, Lord Charles, to preserve the first: not medicine, but the liberty of my own mind. The right to think and speak and move as I chose, not as others bade me. To experience life on my own terms. The only liberty worth the name.” Because in the end, this is a story of sacrifice. No one gets to live a life without regrets and Perry had more than his share of regrets.
This is a highly engaging historical fiction. Levy did meticulous research to present us with this story and it shows throughout the book.
My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown & Co. for an advance copy of this book.
Jonathan’s education at the University of Edinburgh is much more than just medical
studies. He learns how to be a man of rank - to have the confidence, and oftentimes, arrogance of a man, but also how to take part in society.
I appreciated Levy’s ability to give us a detailed time and place. I really enjoyed Perry’s attitude towards medicine - common sense based in an era when medicine more often killed than cured. In fact, much of her time in Cape Town was spent trying to stop druggists from selling fake medicines for profit.
I will admit to getting a wee bit bored with the repeated references to her monthlies and the tactics necessary to hide the evidence. I was more questioning how she hid the more often need to urinate.
As someone who has often thanked God to have been born when I was, I fully understood Jonathan’s need to consistently put brain ahead of heart. More than once, she had to make the decision to maintain the facade rather than opt for love. “That I had to give up the second greatest love of my life, Lord Charles, to preserve the first: not medicine, but the liberty of my own mind. The right to think and speak and move as I chose, not as others bade me. To experience life on my own terms. The only liberty worth the name.” Because in the end, this is a story of sacrifice. No one gets to live a life without regrets and Perry had more than his share of regrets.
This is a highly engaging historical fiction. Levy did meticulous research to present us with this story and it shows throughout the book.
My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown & Co. for an advance copy of this book.
September 16, 2021
This was a fantastic story of the remarkable life of James Miranda Barry, who rose to the highest rank of Inspector General for British military hospitals. The story is incredible but is based on actual history. There is much of his story found on internet sites with antique photos and portraits of Dr. Barry. Those given dates and events clash somewhat with this historical fiction. I admired this well-written novel, its descriptions of the places, people, morals, beliefs, and customs of the era. It presented a compelling and vivid picture of the times. However, I felt liberties were taken with the story of his life and struggles. It was told in the first person in Barry's voice, and I wondered if it presented a disservice to his memory by attributing imagined emotions, thoughts, and speculation to his story rather than focusing more on his important health reforms and professional career.
He was born in Ireland to an impoverished, disunited family as a girl named Margaret. A wealthy uncle's influential friends tutored Margaret. They were astounded by Margaret's high intelligence and sharp mind. They conspired to have her admitted to Edinburgh University to study for a medical degree when women were forbidden to study to become physicians or practise as doctors. The year of Margaret's birth is usually given as 1789, but it was falsified several times and may have been 1795, so we don't know Dr. Barry's true age. In 1809 Margaret changed her name to James Miranda Barry, dressed as a boy, imitated masculine walk and bearing, and entered Edinburgh University. She was often mistaken for a boy too young to have entered such demanding courses, but powerful forces prevailed. From that time on until he died in 1865, Dr. Barry lived and was regarded as a man for
more than 50 years.
After obtaining his medical degree in 1812, he began his military career studying and assisting as a medical doctor in England. In 1816 he was transferred to Cape Town. After curing Governor-General Somerset's very ill daughter, he became a friend and personal physician to this very prominent and powerful man. During his time in Cape Town, he improved sanitation, the water supply, conditions for prisoners, lepers, and the mentally ill. He did the first recorded Caesarian operation in Africa, perhaps in the world, where both the mother and child survived. Military hospitals were improved for soldiers. He stirred up opposition by establishing rules where admission to medical or pharmaceutical practice required proper credentials. Dr. Barry was hot-tempered and argumentive, which caused him to gain enemies despite his renowned professional reputation for medical improvements. A rumor circulated accusing Barry and Somerset of having a homosexual affair. This could result in a death penalty for both but was dismissed. The book gives a quite different interpretation of these charges and what happened next.
After leaving Cape Town, he travelled widely as the most senior Inspector General for British hospitals throughout the empire, including the West Indies and Canada.
When he died, his body was undressed against his instructions. It was established that Dr. Barry was a female who had given birth. Recommended for those who enjoy historical biographies with emotional impact and some compelling medical history.
He was born in Ireland to an impoverished, disunited family as a girl named Margaret. A wealthy uncle's influential friends tutored Margaret. They were astounded by Margaret's high intelligence and sharp mind. They conspired to have her admitted to Edinburgh University to study for a medical degree when women were forbidden to study to become physicians or practise as doctors. The year of Margaret's birth is usually given as 1789, but it was falsified several times and may have been 1795, so we don't know Dr. Barry's true age. In 1809 Margaret changed her name to James Miranda Barry, dressed as a boy, imitated masculine walk and bearing, and entered Edinburgh University. She was often mistaken for a boy too young to have entered such demanding courses, but powerful forces prevailed. From that time on until he died in 1865, Dr. Barry lived and was regarded as a man for
more than 50 years.
After obtaining his medical degree in 1812, he began his military career studying and assisting as a medical doctor in England. In 1816 he was transferred to Cape Town. After curing Governor-General Somerset's very ill daughter, he became a friend and personal physician to this very prominent and powerful man. During his time in Cape Town, he improved sanitation, the water supply, conditions for prisoners, lepers, and the mentally ill. He did the first recorded Caesarian operation in Africa, perhaps in the world, where both the mother and child survived. Military hospitals were improved for soldiers. He stirred up opposition by establishing rules where admission to medical or pharmaceutical practice required proper credentials. Dr. Barry was hot-tempered and argumentive, which caused him to gain enemies despite his renowned professional reputation for medical improvements. A rumor circulated accusing Barry and Somerset of having a homosexual affair. This could result in a death penalty for both but was dismissed. The book gives a quite different interpretation of these charges and what happened next.
After leaving Cape Town, he travelled widely as the most senior Inspector General for British hospitals throughout the empire, including the West Indies and Canada.
When he died, his body was undressed against his instructions. It was established that Dr. Barry was a female who had given birth. Recommended for those who enjoy historical biographies with emotional impact and some compelling medical history.
January 31, 2022
The Cape Doctor recreates a most remarkable journey, inspired by the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry, a trailblazer of remarkable convictions, who studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, which was possible only to the disguise as a male.
Early 1800’s: Margaret, with her mother, leaves Ireland for London, where her mother’s brother lives. The brother’s friend takes Margaret under his wing and gives her education. His library is claimed to be the best one in London; and it’s where she finds a book about the Practice of Midwifery. The brother’s friend recognizes Margaret’s gift for learning and suggests for Margaret to disguise herself as a boy in order to study medicine. Thus, Margaret becomes Jonathan Mirandus Perry.
In Edinburgh, under the cover-up, she lacks the sense of belonging. She also recognizes that she would never be safe to linger in any place, thus she chooses to be a military surgeon.
As a military surgeon, her post takes her to Cape Town in South Africa. A place that feels like home, something she’s been longing for. Then, a rumor arises and could ruin lives of two prominent people or even worse, send them to the gallows.
The exquisitely layered character of Margaret delves into the sense of belonging, finding one’s place, and taking chances in life. Margaret has a great appreciation for the opportunity presented to her despite the notion of what is out of reach for her is simply granted to others. Her disguise is not easy, it makes her feel timid and awkward, but the desire of becoming a brilliant physician gives her courage. With her degree, it continues to be a constant fight to maintain privacy and to prove her worth, but she knows that she can make a difference. She uses her influential alliances skillfully, not only to better her life, but also to be the voice of the voiceless.
The vividly portrayed places take readers from the cobbled streets of Edinburgh where the great minds walked the same streets before Margaret did, to the lush flora and fauna of South Africa, where Margaret explores the mystery of nature by collecting plants and studying their possible medicinal uses. Further, to the politics and English influence or rather their habit of turning every place they colonize into England.
This beautifully woven story brings deeply touching storytelling of how empowering guidance at an early age is. Margaret’s uncle paints with brushstrokes, and his friend paints the most profound picture with his guidance, the most important portrait of a lifetime one can ever receive. This vividly imagined story sheds light on an extraordinary figure, who is smart and intelligent and who grasps challenging chances and with courage and perseveres pursues her dreams.
Review originally posted at mysteryandsuspense.com
Early 1800’s: Margaret, with her mother, leaves Ireland for London, where her mother’s brother lives. The brother’s friend takes Margaret under his wing and gives her education. His library is claimed to be the best one in London; and it’s where she finds a book about the Practice of Midwifery. The brother’s friend recognizes Margaret’s gift for learning and suggests for Margaret to disguise herself as a boy in order to study medicine. Thus, Margaret becomes Jonathan Mirandus Perry.
In Edinburgh, under the cover-up, she lacks the sense of belonging. She also recognizes that she would never be safe to linger in any place, thus she chooses to be a military surgeon.
As a military surgeon, her post takes her to Cape Town in South Africa. A place that feels like home, something she’s been longing for. Then, a rumor arises and could ruin lives of two prominent people or even worse, send them to the gallows.
The exquisitely layered character of Margaret delves into the sense of belonging, finding one’s place, and taking chances in life. Margaret has a great appreciation for the opportunity presented to her despite the notion of what is out of reach for her is simply granted to others. Her disguise is not easy, it makes her feel timid and awkward, but the desire of becoming a brilliant physician gives her courage. With her degree, it continues to be a constant fight to maintain privacy and to prove her worth, but she knows that she can make a difference. She uses her influential alliances skillfully, not only to better her life, but also to be the voice of the voiceless.
The vividly portrayed places take readers from the cobbled streets of Edinburgh where the great minds walked the same streets before Margaret did, to the lush flora and fauna of South Africa, where Margaret explores the mystery of nature by collecting plants and studying their possible medicinal uses. Further, to the politics and English influence or rather their habit of turning every place they colonize into England.
This beautifully woven story brings deeply touching storytelling of how empowering guidance at an early age is. Margaret’s uncle paints with brushstrokes, and his friend paints the most profound picture with his guidance, the most important portrait of a lifetime one can ever receive. This vividly imagined story sheds light on an extraordinary figure, who is smart and intelligent and who grasps challenging chances and with courage and perseveres pursues her dreams.
Review originally posted at mysteryandsuspense.com
March 30, 2022
This novel was based on the real life of Dr. James Miranda Steuart Barry who was born in Cork, Ireland 1789.
Barry was born female, but due to family hardships/poverty …and the female population not being allowed to study and go to college.. he disguised his self as a male to further himself.
While stationed later on at The Cape in Africa,,he performed the first cesarean section by a European in Africa where both mother and child survived.
In this novel his name is Jonathan Miranda Perry .. I don’t know how many of the details of this fictional account are true to fact but it was very interesting.
Barry was born female, but due to family hardships/poverty …and the female population not being allowed to study and go to college.. he disguised his self as a male to further himself.
While stationed later on at The Cape in Africa,,he performed the first cesarean section by a European in Africa where both mother and child survived.
In this novel his name is Jonathan Miranda Perry .. I don’t know how many of the details of this fictional account are true to fact but it was very interesting.
June 19, 2021
It is always my pleasure as a voracious reader to be introduced to people that are finally having their stories being told. I loved this historical novel based on the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry.
Our novel begins with E.J. Levy introducing us to Margaret, young Irish girl in the 19th century born into a poor family. It is soon realized that she is a "prodigy" and her mother and uncle aide Margaret in becoming Jonathan, a young man who will attend college. As the years pass, danger lurks at every corner if the truth is discovered.
I was completely hooked from the very first page and I thought the author kept up a great pace with the storyline. I was immersed in the medical passages of the novel and with many of the characters that the main character meets along.
Publication Date 15/06/21
Goodreads review published 19/06/21
August 15, 2021
Historical novel, inspired by the real life Dr. James Miranda Barry but with a ton of creative fiction when it comes to what really happened/motivations, etc. The writing is charming and feels sort of like a Downton Abbey episode, but in a good way? I sort of wish that his preferred pronouns were used throughout the book, particularly in the end, but I still really enjoyed it and made me go read more about this guy's fascinating life.
April 4, 2019
This is an absolutely brilliant book. (The book has not been release, but I have read an advanced draft.) Levy is a gifted writer who breathed life into Dr. James Miranda Barry. I didn't want the book to end, or to leave the world that Levy created through deep historical research and compelling, witty, smart prose. Highly recommend.
April 8, 2019
I highly recommend this book. It's clear to me that years and years of research and thoughtfulness have gone into this project. Levy's writing is top notch. The writer has a strong command of her material. The novel brings to light an interesting story, one that I had not known about before this, and the topic is timely in today's conversations about gender identity.
February 19, 2019
In trying to find "feminist historical figures" this author has in their entitlement only cared about erasing and harming the trans community, which is clear from the book blurb and author's twitter.
December 26, 2021
The Cape Doctor, by E.J. Levy, is a wonderful read, but before I discuss the book, I want to discuss background a bit. (Warning: the pronouns will shift around some.) The Cape Doctor tells the imagined life story of a real historical figure about whom very little is known: Dr. Jonathan Mirandus Perry. Perry attended medical school in Edinburgh, then became a military doctor posted in South Africa and later in Jamaica. He was ahead of his time in insisting on sanitation and nutrition; he fought quack remedies and their makers; he performed the first known successful C-section on the continent of Africa.
After Perry's death, it was discovered that his body was, apparently, female. This final revelation has led to two very different interpretations of Perry's life. One view, held by those looking for a feminist historical narrative, presents Perry as female-identified, despite passing as a man for most of their life. They see Perry's story as a demonstration of the ridiculous lengths women had to go to in the early 19th Century in order to achieve an education and profession. Another view is that Perry was transsexual, identified as male, and should be considered a ground-breaking figure in LGBTQI+ history.
The Cape Doctor is built around the first of these views. Levy presents Perry as a woman who spent her life passing as a man in order to achieve personal goals. Radical transgender web site EE Ottoman takes the second view, making the case for Perry's male identity: https://acosmistmachine.com/2015/11/2... The disagreement about Perry's identity has led to a very bifurcated response to The Cape Doctor. Those who see (or are comfortable seeing in the context of a novel) Perry as female are generally enthusiastic about the book. Those who see Perry as transgendered see this book as an erasure of transgender history.
My take—although I am saying this as someone who is not a historian and who is just beginning to learn about Perry—is that neither case can be made conclusively enough to prove the other false. If I had to guess how Perry identified themselves (and it would be a guess), I'd say that Perry probably was transgendered, but I can also understand why Levy chose Perry as a character to serve as the center of a novel exploring alternate female identities in the 19th Century. That's as far as I'll go with this discussion, aside from saying I'm looking forward to reading more about Perry and seeing what (pronoun shift) their life can teach me about both female and trans identity.
I flat-out loved The Cape Doctor. Levy is very clear that what she is writing is fiction, and I'm willing to approach the novel knowing it can't tell me how Perry themselves identified.
I loved The Cape Doctor for the insights it offered into female identity. Perry as created by Levy is very articulate and deeply reflective. Her (pronoun shift) inner world is complex. She notes the changes in bearing and personality she has to develop to be perceived as male: assertiveness, self-confidence, an aggressive sense of humor, an insistence on defending her own views—which includes arguing for women's rights. She's fascinated by the way women approach her once she's perceived as male and enjoys flirting with them. Levy gives her version of Perry opportunities to renounce her decision to present herself to the world as female, which Perry does not embrace. Perry's focus in this novel is always on being a medical practitioner and having the freedom of movement and opinion that external male identity provides.
Don't read The Cape Doctor as history. Don't assume you know the "real" Perry once you've read it. But do, if possible, let yourself learn from the ruminations on gender and identity that Levy's Perry raises. If you want to know about the historical Perry, look for nonfiction titles that explore what we can know about who he/they/she really was.
After Perry's death, it was discovered that his body was, apparently, female. This final revelation has led to two very different interpretations of Perry's life. One view, held by those looking for a feminist historical narrative, presents Perry as female-identified, despite passing as a man for most of their life. They see Perry's story as a demonstration of the ridiculous lengths women had to go to in the early 19th Century in order to achieve an education and profession. Another view is that Perry was transsexual, identified as male, and should be considered a ground-breaking figure in LGBTQI+ history.
The Cape Doctor is built around the first of these views. Levy presents Perry as a woman who spent her life passing as a man in order to achieve personal goals. Radical transgender web site EE Ottoman takes the second view, making the case for Perry's male identity: https://acosmistmachine.com/2015/11/2... The disagreement about Perry's identity has led to a very bifurcated response to The Cape Doctor. Those who see (or are comfortable seeing in the context of a novel) Perry as female are generally enthusiastic about the book. Those who see Perry as transgendered see this book as an erasure of transgender history.
My take—although I am saying this as someone who is not a historian and who is just beginning to learn about Perry—is that neither case can be made conclusively enough to prove the other false. If I had to guess how Perry identified themselves (and it would be a guess), I'd say that Perry probably was transgendered, but I can also understand why Levy chose Perry as a character to serve as the center of a novel exploring alternate female identities in the 19th Century. That's as far as I'll go with this discussion, aside from saying I'm looking forward to reading more about Perry and seeing what (pronoun shift) their life can teach me about both female and trans identity.
I flat-out loved The Cape Doctor. Levy is very clear that what she is writing is fiction, and I'm willing to approach the novel knowing it can't tell me how Perry themselves identified.
I loved The Cape Doctor for the insights it offered into female identity. Perry as created by Levy is very articulate and deeply reflective. Her (pronoun shift) inner world is complex. She notes the changes in bearing and personality she has to develop to be perceived as male: assertiveness, self-confidence, an aggressive sense of humor, an insistence on defending her own views—which includes arguing for women's rights. She's fascinated by the way women approach her once she's perceived as male and enjoys flirting with them. Levy gives her version of Perry opportunities to renounce her decision to present herself to the world as female, which Perry does not embrace. Perry's focus in this novel is always on being a medical practitioner and having the freedom of movement and opinion that external male identity provides.
Don't read The Cape Doctor as history. Don't assume you know the "real" Perry once you've read it. But do, if possible, let yourself learn from the ruminations on gender and identity that Levy's Perry raises. If you want to know about the historical Perry, look for nonfiction titles that explore what we can know about who he/they/she really was.
August 18, 2021
I read this novel in one day.
It was a windy, gloomy day. But that is not why I read it in one day. I read it in one day because I did not want to stop reading.
I loved the narrative voice, the feeling of being transported back several centuries, the knowing wink to the style of the early 19th c in lines like "No one who had ever seen Margaret Brackley in her infancy would have supposed her born to be a heroine (or so Jane Austen might have written of her..."
I was interested in the questions the narrator struggled with, about choice and chance, gender identity, the gap between male and female autonomy and self-determination.
Which of us is undisguised, after all? Which of us reveals himself truly to the world. ~from The Cape Doctor by E. J. Levy
The Cape Doctor is based on the true story of a woman who posed as a man to gain an education and become the first female doctor. She performed the first recorded, successful Cesarean operation by a European in Africa, both mother and child surviving.
Levy's character is inspired by the historical Barry, but Levy gives her own spin to the story, concentrating on the feminist issues. Her Dr. Perry lives as a man, but identifies as female. (Another character is hermaphrodite, which some believe Barry was, while others believe Barry was transsexual. Those controversies do not affect my reading of this novel, as this is historical fiction inspired by true events, and not a biography.)
Under Levy's hands, the imagined character Margaret Brackley becomes Dr. Jonathan Mirandus Perry. She tells her story of transformation from a subservient and invisible female to an authoritative and competent professional man of society.
In dire poverty, Margaret's mother sends her to beg aid from her uncle. There, she meets General Mirandus, who takes an interest in her brilliant mind. After her uncle's death, the general sends her to be educated in Edinburgh's esteemed medical school with plans for her to become his personal physician in Caracas.
Margaret cuts her hair and binds her breasts and dons a boy's clothing. She learns to lower her voice, to change her actions and her attitude, to mimic. She learns how to masquerade, how to pass.
As Dr. Perry, she becomes a successful army doctor in Cape Town, with at least one young lady falling in love with her.
When her true sex is discovered, she has a love affair and must chose between love and her career, and more importantly, "the right to think and speak and move as I chose, not as others bade me. To experience life on my own terms."
I thought of Mary Wollstonecraft, another brilliant woman who was also against marriage, whose love affairs were scandalous.
As a first-person narrative in the style of the early 19th c, Margaret/Perry speaks to issues of identity and freedom, often in pithy epigrams. And most are quite timeless. Including, "You can judge a culture by its medicine, by how it teats is most vulnerable--the ill."
It is interesting to learn that the Cape Doctor is the name for a strong wind that today blows away the pollution over Cape Town and provides waves for perfect surfing, but which was believed to also blow away bad spirits, healing the town. And that fair weather comes after the blow.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
It was a windy, gloomy day. But that is not why I read it in one day. I read it in one day because I did not want to stop reading.
I loved the narrative voice, the feeling of being transported back several centuries, the knowing wink to the style of the early 19th c in lines like "No one who had ever seen Margaret Brackley in her infancy would have supposed her born to be a heroine (or so Jane Austen might have written of her..."
I was interested in the questions the narrator struggled with, about choice and chance, gender identity, the gap between male and female autonomy and self-determination.
Which of us is undisguised, after all? Which of us reveals himself truly to the world. ~from The Cape Doctor by E. J. Levy
The Cape Doctor is based on the true story of a woman who posed as a man to gain an education and become the first female doctor. She performed the first recorded, successful Cesarean operation by a European in Africa, both mother and child surviving.
Levy's character is inspired by the historical Barry, but Levy gives her own spin to the story, concentrating on the feminist issues. Her Dr. Perry lives as a man, but identifies as female. (Another character is hermaphrodite, which some believe Barry was, while others believe Barry was transsexual. Those controversies do not affect my reading of this novel, as this is historical fiction inspired by true events, and not a biography.)
Under Levy's hands, the imagined character Margaret Brackley becomes Dr. Jonathan Mirandus Perry. She tells her story of transformation from a subservient and invisible female to an authoritative and competent professional man of society.
In dire poverty, Margaret's mother sends her to beg aid from her uncle. There, she meets General Mirandus, who takes an interest in her brilliant mind. After her uncle's death, the general sends her to be educated in Edinburgh's esteemed medical school with plans for her to become his personal physician in Caracas.
Margaret cuts her hair and binds her breasts and dons a boy's clothing. She learns to lower her voice, to change her actions and her attitude, to mimic. She learns how to masquerade, how to pass.
As Dr. Perry, she becomes a successful army doctor in Cape Town, with at least one young lady falling in love with her.
When her true sex is discovered, she has a love affair and must chose between love and her career, and more importantly, "the right to think and speak and move as I chose, not as others bade me. To experience life on my own terms."
I thought of Mary Wollstonecraft, another brilliant woman who was also against marriage, whose love affairs were scandalous.
As a first-person narrative in the style of the early 19th c, Margaret/Perry speaks to issues of identity and freedom, often in pithy epigrams. And most are quite timeless. Including, "You can judge a culture by its medicine, by how it teats is most vulnerable--the ill."
It is interesting to learn that the Cape Doctor is the name for a strong wind that today blows away the pollution over Cape Town and provides waves for perfect surfing, but which was believed to also blow away bad spirits, healing the town. And that fair weather comes after the blow.
I received a free egalley from the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.
April 6, 2019
This is a horribly disrespectful take that portrays a historically acknowledged trans man as a cross dressing woman for the purposes of furthering trans exclusionary agendas.
April 25, 2023
This was super interesting. It is historical fiction, based on a real physician, born in the late 18th century as a female, who transformed herself into a male so that she could better her life and her family’s circumstances, and because she was brilliant and wanted a career as a doctor, which would not have been possible as a female. Almost no one knew that the doctor, who had a long and distinguished career-was a female, ever, until death, when a nurse who tended the body saw the truth.
The story is told in first person. No one will ever know, of course, the real truth. Was the doctor a transgender man? Was the doctor a woman who wanted a voice and to pursue her passion above all else, therefore sacrificing her gender forever? I liked that so many questions arose in my head. I loved the descriptions of the different places. Oddly, I did not care for the romance-it did not ring true to me. Perhaps because in the romance, the doctor became female, therefore more vulnerable.
This was well worth the read.
The story is told in first person. No one will ever know, of course, the real truth. Was the doctor a transgender man? Was the doctor a woman who wanted a voice and to pursue her passion above all else, therefore sacrificing her gender forever? I liked that so many questions arose in my head. I loved the descriptions of the different places. Oddly, I did not care for the romance-it did not ring true to me. Perhaps because in the romance, the doctor became female, therefore more vulnerable.
This was well worth the read.
November 1, 2021
DNF at 38%
The 2 stars truly means that this book was just ok. I read the reviews and did some additional research but once I cracked the book open I feel like there is no story. Nothing really happens. As a work of fiction there was all sorts of story lines the author could explore. Nothing. No close calls, no almost exposed, no side characters, no side relationship(yet?), no back story, no descriptions of why the main character made the choices they made, NOTHING! They grow up, has a favorite uncle then boom, they're in Africa. How boring, lol.
The 2 stars truly means that this book was just ok. I read the reviews and did some additional research but once I cracked the book open I feel like there is no story. Nothing really happens. As a work of fiction there was all sorts of story lines the author could explore. Nothing. No close calls, no almost exposed, no side characters, no side relationship(yet?), no back story, no descriptions of why the main character made the choices they made, NOTHING! They grow up, has a favorite uncle then boom, they're in Africa. How boring, lol.
April 9, 2019
I'm eagerly looking forward to reading this book once it's released! What a remarkable life James Barry must have led, wide-ranging and still deeply reserved - biologically a woman, but living life as the man she had to be to pursue her brilliant career. I know this novel is the product of long research as well as imagination, and am excited to see what E. J. has made of it!
July 21, 2021
I’m at Chapter 2, page 61.
I cannot finish this book. I find the writing style off-putting.
If ever there was a book that should not be written in the first person, this is it. It is presumptuous to do so.
I am interested to know more about Dr. James Miranda Barry but I’ll find a different book.
I cannot finish this book. I find the writing style off-putting.
If ever there was a book that should not be written in the first person, this is it. It is presumptuous to do so.
I am interested to know more about Dr. James Miranda Barry but I’ll find a different book.
December 2, 2021
2.5*
Viena iš tų knygų, kuomet tikra istorija pagal kurią ji parašyta - įdomesnė.
Labai lengvas istorinis romanas apie 19 amžiuje gyvenusį chirurgą James Miranda Bary. O visas įdomus tame, kad gimė jis moterimi - Margaret Anne Bulkley. Ši paslaptis paaiškėjo tik jai/jam mirus einant 76-sius metus.
Beje, ji/jis pirmasis atliko sėkmingą cezario pjūvį.
Viena iš tų knygų, kuomet tikra istorija pagal kurią ji parašyta - įdomesnė.
Labai lengvas istorinis romanas apie 19 amžiuje gyvenusį chirurgą James Miranda Bary. O visas įdomus tame, kad gimė jis moterimi - Margaret Anne Bulkley. Ši paslaptis paaiškėjo tik jai/jam mirus einant 76-sius metus.
Beje, ji/jis pirmasis atliko sėkmingą cezario pjūvį.
June 18, 2021
She Died, So I might live.
The Cape Doctor by E.J. Levy is a brilliant book.
It is a story of a woman who decides to live as a man in order to enter medical school and become a doctor. The story is inspired by the true story of Dr. James Miranda Barry.
I really enjoyed reading Margaret Buckley’s journey and how she fought to stop the druggist from selling fake medicines that were killing people, for their own profit. I liked learning about her inner thoughts and found them remarkably interesting.
I’ve read so many mixed reviews about this book. My rating is based on my opinion of the story.
Many thanks to Little, Brown, and Company for my gifted copy.
#bookoholiccafe #readthisbook #readersofinstagram #Booksofsummer #ke
The Cape Doctor by E.J. Levy is a brilliant book.
It is a story of a woman who decides to live as a man in order to enter medical school and become a doctor. The story is inspired by the true story of Dr. James Miranda Barry.
I really enjoyed reading Margaret Buckley’s journey and how she fought to stop the druggist from selling fake medicines that were killing people, for their own profit. I liked learning about her inner thoughts and found them remarkably interesting.
I’ve read so many mixed reviews about this book. My rating is based on my opinion of the story.
Many thanks to Little, Brown, and Company for my gifted copy.
#bookoholiccafe #readthisbook #readersofinstagram #Booksofsummer #ke
September 21, 2019
I was fortunate enough to receive an advance copy of this novel, and I can attenst that it is breathtaking in scope and vivid in its language. As with Levy's other work, especially her story collection *Love, In Theory*, the prose is almost poetic--and her story captivating. Put simply, E. J. Levy's *The Cape Doctor* is not a book to be missed.
June 30, 2021
First of all my deep thanks to @Netgalley for an early audiobook copy of The cape doctor
This was a wonderful book, it was an absolute pleasure to listen!
The writer has a great vocabulary and it made for an engaging, somewhat poetic read.
The book is based on Dr Perry, who was a famous physician of the British Empire in the 19th century. He had 2 major achievements: as a doctor, he made vast improvements in his field; and as a woman, he managed to conceal his
birth gender all of his life.
Of these two achievements, the book concentrates on the aspect of a woman who had to become a man to help his/her family and to be able to become a doctor. The focus is on this journey, and it is a welcome one. Throughout history, many females had to crossdress and remake themselves as men for survival, for a quality life. I love how the book describes this journey - though at times it became a touch too sentimental.
I did miss more focus on the medical achievements, that sadly took second place, but it was touched upon. Would have dearly loved to read more details.
Ps: I'm aware of the unavoidable controversy within the trans community, and i saw with dismay how many 1 star reviews popped up before the book was even available.
To be honest it angered me - there is no proof of Dr Perry being transgender, what he did was more likely a necessity and not a choice. History is peppered with women who needed to act as men to be heard - some may have been transgender but with historical figures it cannot be said. It is important that women's achievements are celebrated, and not get lost again behind "more important" agendas.
This was a wonderful book, it was an absolute pleasure to listen!
The writer has a great vocabulary and it made for an engaging, somewhat poetic read.
The book is based on Dr Perry, who was a famous physician of the British Empire in the 19th century. He had 2 major achievements: as a doctor, he made vast improvements in his field; and as a woman, he managed to conceal his
birth gender all of his life.
Of these two achievements, the book concentrates on the aspect of a woman who had to become a man to help his/her family and to be able to become a doctor. The focus is on this journey, and it is a welcome one. Throughout history, many females had to crossdress and remake themselves as men for survival, for a quality life. I love how the book describes this journey - though at times it became a touch too sentimental.
I did miss more focus on the medical achievements, that sadly took second place, but it was touched upon. Would have dearly loved to read more details.
Ps: I'm aware of the unavoidable controversy within the trans community, and i saw with dismay how many 1 star reviews popped up before the book was even available.
To be honest it angered me - there is no proof of Dr Perry being transgender, what he did was more likely a necessity and not a choice. History is peppered with women who needed to act as men to be heard - some may have been transgender but with historical figures it cannot be said. It is important that women's achievements are celebrated, and not get lost again behind "more important" agendas.
July 11, 2021
The Cape Doctor by E.J. Levy
The Cape Doctor is the story of a doctor who was born Mary, became Jonathan, and lived a life full of pleasure and disappointment, and along the way found a cure for syphilis, saved thousands of lives, and received the highest rank a military surgeon could obtain in the mid-nineteenth century. Jonathan is based on the real life of Doctor James Barry.
The first third of the book recounts Jonathan’s education in Edinburgh and London and is a love letter to the pleasures of the mind. “There was a kind of greed in me for learning, a passion that seems to have taken the place of the erotic desire others claimed to feel.” Levy expertly captures the giddy excitement of a young person coming to believe their opinions matter, and the intensity one can feel towards studying: “Together we embarked on our frenzied, half-ecstatic preparations, the orgy of intellectual self-absorption that is among the chief pleasures of academic training.”
The remainder of the book is chiefly concerned with Doctor Perry’s relationship with Lord Somerton of Cape Town. While this reads as a Victorian romance (fans of Jane Austen will find it satisfying), Jonathan refers to Lord Somerton as “my friend” throughout, using “lover” only twice, and then only with reference to himself: “I was surprised by the delight I took in my new role of lover.”
In Somerton’s presence, Perry feels, “multiplied,” rather than diminished. Somerton quite literally “sees” Perry; he knows his secret, which could get Perry court martialed or killed. However, Levy spends very few lines on their physical relationship, instead focusing on Jonathan’s reflections on relationships themselves. “It was not Lord Somerton’s romantic interest that I coveted, but his attention. Above all, his love.”
In Perry’s own time, the scandal (and yes, there was one) of this relationship was about two men having a sexual relationship. By focusing very little on the physical aspects of their time together, Levy avoids reinscribing the voyeurism of such a scandal in her own text, and instead shifts the reader’s attention towards the unique and universal struggles of Jonathan, who like all of us, was constantly groping to figure out how he wanted to be loved.
The novel also creates philosophical distance by giving Jonathan a voice from beyond the grave. In recounting one of his friend’s cruelties, Jonathan tells us, “The dead know what happens, not why.” In death, the doctor continues questioning, observing and doubting, but this literary device is also used to throw the act of interpretation back on us as readers: “We treated imaginary bodies. We still do; to some extent, the body is a figment of the imagination of its time.” Is this “we” a 19th century we? Or we the readers? Yes. Both.
In one instance, Doctor Perry’s desire to study local plants, leads to an aside about names: “The naming of things was a passion for me then—as I had rechristened myself and in so doing been remade. Names had an incantatory quality, seemed a species of magic. Only later, much later, would I recognize the horror of this, how names can fix and contain, diminish and delimit: call a person a woman or a man and we think we know what we are seeing, but do we?”
These philosophical flashbacks bubble up and then subtly recede from the ongoing story and are used effectively to draw our attention to and destabilize categories important to both Jonathan and to us: gender, love, identity, friendship, pleasure. Because of Jonathan’s intellectual training, they don’t feel tacked on, but rather organic to his mind and integral to his self. Doctor Perry is telling us what happened, but like us, he is still trying to figure out, why.
February 13, 2023
If I had to pick my favourite book genre it has to be Historical Fiction! I love it. I was really looking forward to reading The Cape Doctor by author E. J. Levy. Thank you to @Goodreads, the publisher Little, Brown and Company, and a special thanks to the author for helping me get my copy of her book! It was worth the wait.
After reading only a few pages, I knew I was going to enjoy this book. The story is inspired by the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry who was a stand out physician in the 1800s. They were born a girl named Margaret Anne Bulkley, ca. 1795, in Ireland.
This heart-rending story is mostly told chronologically. It beings with Margaret’s childhood in early 1800s Cork, to their decision to pass for a boy in order to study medicine in Edinburg, moving on to Dr. Perry’s early days as The Cape Doctor in South Africa,....
This thoughtful historical novel is well researched. I found myself looking into things that were vividly described in the novel. I could imagine the places, and the graphic anatomy lessons (and unfortunately the smells). On the side, I found myself reading about the infamous 1820s Edinburg body snatchers, who sold corpses to doctors for anatomy lectures and dissection. I wanted to know more about the real Dr. Barry. I was invested in this imaginary story, and in the protagonist, who fittingly is this story’s narrator.
Some major topics and themes in this novel are: Identity, Gender, Love, Medicine, Equality, and Class. I recommend The Cape Doctor to anyone interested in these themes, but mostly to fans of Historical Fiction. It is well written and thought provoking. The Cape Doctor is one of my favourite Goodreads so far!
#TheCapeDoctor #EJLevy #goodreads #goodreadschallenge2023
After reading only a few pages, I knew I was going to enjoy this book. The story is inspired by the life of Dr. James Miranda Barry who was a stand out physician in the 1800s. They were born a girl named Margaret Anne Bulkley, ca. 1795, in Ireland.
This heart-rending story is mostly told chronologically. It beings with Margaret’s childhood in early 1800s Cork, to their decision to pass for a boy in order to study medicine in Edinburg, moving on to Dr. Perry’s early days as The Cape Doctor in South Africa,....
This thoughtful historical novel is well researched. I found myself looking into things that were vividly described in the novel. I could imagine the places, and the graphic anatomy lessons (and unfortunately the smells). On the side, I found myself reading about the infamous 1820s Edinburg body snatchers, who sold corpses to doctors for anatomy lectures and dissection. I wanted to know more about the real Dr. Barry. I was invested in this imaginary story, and in the protagonist, who fittingly is this story’s narrator.
Some major topics and themes in this novel are: Identity, Gender, Love, Medicine, Equality, and Class. I recommend The Cape Doctor to anyone interested in these themes, but mostly to fans of Historical Fiction. It is well written and thought provoking. The Cape Doctor is one of my favourite Goodreads so far!
#TheCapeDoctor #EJLevy #goodreads #goodreadschallenge2023
May 11, 2024
What a fascinating story! I'm so thankful for all the researchers and historians that helped make this story as accurate as possible. While fictionalized, I felt like I was reading someone's life story.
I discovered this book on display at my local library for Transgender Day of Awareness. I'm so thankful to all the work that librarians do to showcase stories like this!
I discovered this book on display at my local library for Transgender Day of Awareness. I'm so thankful to all the work that librarians do to showcase stories like this!
August 10, 2022
(Audio version) I really liked this book. Story was both fascinating and lively, more so in that it was essentially true. And the reader—other then a few trip-ups on a couple of accents—did an amazing job. Like listening to theater. We’ll done.
August 2, 2021
Inspired by the real-life Irish physician James Barry, born as Margaret Ann Bulkley, The Cape Doctor follows the journey of Jonathan Mirandus Perry, who must live as a man in order to study and practice as a medical doctor. The novel is a first-person account of Perry's life, told retrospectively.
From the beginning, I was struck by the voice of the narrator, which is rich, emotionally acute, and sounds accurate. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought it was actually written by someone who lived in the 19th century. By being entrenched in Perry's point of view, we see and experience life as Perry does, and feel the difficulty that living in such a socially backwards time must have been like, not to mention while practicing as a medical doctor.
Levy does an excellent job maintaining the narrative tension throughout the novel and as Perry moves through life. The question of whether Perry will be discovered as a man is a constant, and we are kept on the hook by the knowledge that such discovery could be punishable by death. But more than that, Levy keeps the reader interested by Perry's humanity and humaneness.
Don't get me wrong, Perry is not portrayed as a saint, and has flaws inherent to the human condition, but the positive affect Perry has on most everyone was quite heartening to read, and a reminder of how a single person can touch the lives of so many, even while living under marginalized conditions wrought by systemic injustice.
Perry's story is an inspiring and fascinating one and is a must read for everyone.
From the beginning, I was struck by the voice of the narrator, which is rich, emotionally acute, and sounds accurate. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought it was actually written by someone who lived in the 19th century. By being entrenched in Perry's point of view, we see and experience life as Perry does, and feel the difficulty that living in such a socially backwards time must have been like, not to mention while practicing as a medical doctor.
Levy does an excellent job maintaining the narrative tension throughout the novel and as Perry moves through life. The question of whether Perry will be discovered as a man is a constant, and we are kept on the hook by the knowledge that such discovery could be punishable by death. But more than that, Levy keeps the reader interested by Perry's humanity and humaneness.
Don't get me wrong, Perry is not portrayed as a saint, and has flaws inherent to the human condition, but the positive affect Perry has on most everyone was quite heartening to read, and a reminder of how a single person can touch the lives of so many, even while living under marginalized conditions wrought by systemic injustice.
Perry's story is an inspiring and fascinating one and is a must read for everyone.
October 8, 2021
This is a wonderful novel by an award-winning writer. You will be transported and immersed by the gorgeous writing and inspiring heartbreaking tale. Highly recommend
October 7, 2024
I was blown away by this incredible tale of a young girl who impersonated a boy in order to gain an education. Based on the life of Margaret Buckley, a poor Irish girl in the early 19th century, this book is a vivid and compelling story that reads like an adventure novel.
When Margaret and her mother are thrown out of the house that should have been theirs by her greedy and profligate father and brother, they land in London where Margaret encounters a wealthy benefactor who convinces the women that Margaret is intelligent and talented enough to study medicine. All she needs to do is become a male.
Margaret becomes Jonathan Perry and is accepted at the University of Edinburgh as a medical student where she excels in all her studies and is awarded a degree. Dr. Perry can now practice medicine and accepts a commission as an army surgeon in South Africa. There he is recognized as a groundbreaking physician and is the first surgeon to perform a successful caesarean delivery in Africa.
The author tells the tale as if it were a novel. I was engaged and touched by this brilliant person who was so physically and emotionally isolated by the terrifying secret she harbored. On a daily basis she faced ruination, prosecution and possibly death for the deception she lived with. This is one of the best books I’ve read this year and I highly recommend it.
When Margaret and her mother are thrown out of the house that should have been theirs by her greedy and profligate father and brother, they land in London where Margaret encounters a wealthy benefactor who convinces the women that Margaret is intelligent and talented enough to study medicine. All she needs to do is become a male.
Margaret becomes Jonathan Perry and is accepted at the University of Edinburgh as a medical student where she excels in all her studies and is awarded a degree. Dr. Perry can now practice medicine and accepts a commission as an army surgeon in South Africa. There he is recognized as a groundbreaking physician and is the first surgeon to perform a successful caesarean delivery in Africa.
The author tells the tale as if it were a novel. I was engaged and touched by this brilliant person who was so physically and emotionally isolated by the terrifying secret she harbored. On a daily basis she faced ruination, prosecution and possibly death for the deception she lived with. This is one of the best books I’ve read this year and I highly recommend it.
February 5, 2023
Brilliant! This book is most beautifully written prose coupled with medical accuracy and what it means to live life fully. I listened to the audiobook, and the author was among the best I’ve enjoyed. I loved the strength of this character and the historical accuracy. I read one review where the person was concerned that it was written in first person, so we would count everything she/he said as fact, I think that is absurd. Unless this were based on decades of diaries, the reader must know it is well researched fictionalized history. This book deserves to be read and celebrated by women who have been discounted through the centuries.
That is not to say that men would not enjoy this book greatly, as Dr. Perry/Barry discusses the nuances of behaving like a man and so would be relatable to males.
That is not to say that men would not enjoy this book greatly, as Dr. Perry/Barry discusses the nuances of behaving like a man and so would be relatable to males.
December 1, 2021
This book had a slow start but it ends up being important information forming the character…it’s gratifying when the slow start actually has a reason. I really liked the language of this book and how eloquent it is written. I had to Google a couple words…so I actually learned something too.
This book really made me think about a time and place where women were considered property and had very little rights. This book also brings to light that it wasn’t all that long ago. Good read ladies and gents.
This book really made me think about a time and place where women were considered property and had very little rights. This book also brings to light that it wasn’t all that long ago. Good read ladies and gents.
May 9, 2023
Born a girl, Margaret, in County Cork Ireland Jonathan Mirandus Perry disguises himself as a man and attends medical school. Rising in ranks, falling in love and bearing a child only being pubically exposed at her death. Based on a true story. Really great read!!
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