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Cut
Cut is a thrilling, provocative novel set against the backdrop of a major Melbourne hospital's surgical team in the time before #metoo blew the lid off institutionalised misogyny and sexism (and will appeal to readers of Love & Virtue and Emotional Female).
Carla is a young doctor striving to become the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When a consultant post opens up, she competes with her lover for the job and thinks she can be judged on merit. But an assault after a boozy workplace dinner leaves her traumatised and struggling to cope with the misogyny coming from every corner of her workplace. Recovering her fragmented memories from that night, Carla begins a fight for justice that will shake the foundations of the hospital she loves.
Carla is a young doctor striving to become the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When a consultant post opens up, she competes with her lover for the job and thinks she can be judged on merit. But an assault after a boozy workplace dinner leaves her traumatised and struggling to cope with the misogyny coming from every corner of her workplace. Recovering her fragmented memories from that night, Carla begins a fight for justice that will shake the foundations of the hospital she loves.
- GenresFiction
335 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 30, 2022
5 people are currently reading
334 people want to read
About the author
Susan White
121 books11 followersLibrarian Note: There are more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
July 31, 2023
TW: misogyny and all the horrible things that go with it
Dr Carla di Pietra is a surgical registrar at one of Melbourne’s largest hospitals. It’s a “boys club” and she’s constantly fighting to be treated as an equal. She tries to ignore misogynistic behaviour and comments so that she doesn’t “rock the boat.”
It isn’t until a younger surgical intern is groped bstarts calling out the behaviours. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s all for nothing.
I loved this novel. Carla is a wonderful protagonist and her growth throughout the novel is superb. But I have to admit that my favourite part about her is that she’s Italian and that I could literally hear my Nonna’s voice in my head as I was reading “Santa Maria, pregare per noi.”
I HATED “that scene” (huge TW) but completely understand why it needed to happen. It made me so made to see Carla go through what she did, knowing that it is probably more common than any one of us cares to admit.
Thank you to @sistersincrimeau for getting this book on my radar and thank you Susan for an absolutely fantastic, albeit difficult, book to read.
Dr Carla di Pietra is a surgical registrar at one of Melbourne’s largest hospitals. It’s a “boys club” and she’s constantly fighting to be treated as an equal. She tries to ignore misogynistic behaviour and comments so that she doesn’t “rock the boat.”
It isn’t until a younger surgical intern is groped bstarts calling out the behaviours. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s all for nothing.
I loved this novel. Carla is a wonderful protagonist and her growth throughout the novel is superb. But I have to admit that my favourite part about her is that she’s Italian and that I could literally hear my Nonna’s voice in my head as I was reading “Santa Maria, pregare per noi.”
I HATED “that scene” (huge TW) but completely understand why it needed to happen. It made me so made to see Carla go through what she did, knowing that it is probably more common than any one of us cares to admit.
Thank you to @sistersincrimeau for getting this book on my radar and thank you Susan for an absolutely fantastic, albeit difficult, book to read.
dnf
May 2, 2023DNF 7% not getting sucked in, feels a bit basic.
November 20, 2025
As someone who works in the healthcare industry, this book hit very close to home in all the right ways. The sexism and misogyny were not a vibe though, but made for a well crafted story line.
December 30, 2022
A compelling fiction debut, Cut by (Doctor) Susan White exposes the misogyny and sexism that hinders the ambitions of young female surgeons in Australian medical institutions.
The story centres on Carla, a talented surgeon, whose aspiration is to become a consultant at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When she, and a fellow doctor, are assaulted by a senior surgeon she realises she has underestimated the determination of the male-dominated system to exclude women from its ranks.
Cut is not an easy read, Carla’s experiences are harrowing, and all too real. I was impressed that White also shows how Carla struggles with the compromises she makes to protect her career ambitions. Carla’s complicity is confronting, but I found it easy to empathise with her. The treatment she receives from the hierarchy is frustrating and infuriating.
Having read Scrubbed, a memoir by Australian surgeon Dr Nikki Stamp earlier this year, Carla’s experience reads authentically.
Sharp, insightful and provocative, Cut is a great read.
The story centres on Carla, a talented surgeon, whose aspiration is to become a consultant at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When she, and a fellow doctor, are assaulted by a senior surgeon she realises she has underestimated the determination of the male-dominated system to exclude women from its ranks.
Cut is not an easy read, Carla’s experiences are harrowing, and all too real. I was impressed that White also shows how Carla struggles with the compromises she makes to protect her career ambitions. Carla’s complicity is confronting, but I found it easy to empathise with her. The treatment she receives from the hierarchy is frustrating and infuriating.
Having read Scrubbed, a memoir by Australian surgeon Dr Nikki Stamp earlier this year, Carla’s experience reads authentically.
Sharp, insightful and provocative, Cut is a great read.
September 2, 2022
“Cut” is an apt title for this book that incisively dissects the male dominated culture in the surgery unit of a large public hospital. Set in Melbourne, the story follows Carla, a surgical registrar, who is competing for a highly coveted position as a consultant. At the outset, we see Carla navigating the governing workplace patriarchy by following the dictum “if you can’t beat ‘em join ‘em”.
A number of scenes in the early part of the book show her striving to be “one of the boys”. For example, while she often finds the banter of her male colleagues “puerile” and “boring”, she laughs along because “this was my tribe …I wanted to belong”. This is not so much the desire of the outsider to belong, as survival tactics in an environment where she knows not belonging could cost her the career she longs for. That towards the end of the book she looks back and thinks “how strongly I had believed that they were my clan, my surgical brothers” is an indication of the extent to which she deluded herself in blind pursuit of success.
The plot is a development of Carla’s gradual journey from self-delusion through realisation that the only way to confront institutionalised sexism and misogyny is to call it out. That doing so can have drastic results brings her to the final recognition that the only way to beat the system is to step away, regroup and re-engage, accepting that justice on a greater scale than individual career advancement is worth far more and will, in the end, be more rewarding.
Things that detract from an otherwise strong story include unconvincing characters in some cases. Toby, Carla’s boyfriend, for example is painted as utterly obnoxious. It’s hard to understand why an intelligent, reasonably astute woman would be interested in him, despite “the curl of his biceps” or her desire to “smell the money in his aftershave”. Presumably the author wants to show the intensity of Carla’s attraction to him, but the fact that (pre-enlightenment) she goes weak at the knees at his every appearance and engages in behaviour that blatantly jeopardises her career, tends to weaken the case that women don’t engage in the same sexist behaviour as men. Also, Tess of the bouncing curls who tends to “squeal” and clap her hands together at the least provocation comes across as too girlish and silly, even given her relative youth and junior status.
Another shortcoming is the regular use of clunky similes, such as “humiliation chafed like sand in my bathers”, “panic falling away like a shed snakeskin”, “a breeze rustled through the plane trees like a stranger making their way through a crowd”. Sometimes the striving for originality can be counter-productive.
It’s easy to interpret this book as solely an indictment of the misuse of male power in the workplace, but it’s just as much about the unwitting compliance of women in permitting sexual privileges in return for material rewards, (be they jobs or diamond necklaces) especially when it seems blatantly obvious that characters such as Toby, the wandering-handed Benson and the smarmy “silver fox” Geoffrey will rarely behave with any kind of integrity. I’d have liked to see a bit more complexity to Carla, to whom, given her education and profession, the outcomes shouldn’t have come as such a surprise.
But the premise is a compelling one and certainly topical. Female oppression, sexual abuse and rape are plot devices that have been heavily employed in literature, movies and television in recent years, given further impetus by the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement it precipitated. There are some parallels with novels like “Anatomy of a Scandal” by Sarah Vaughan and “Apple Tree Yard” by Louise Doughty, although these stories benefit from more nuanced character development.
This is the author’s first adult novel. It’s an impressive debut and reflects the fact that Susan White is herself a doctor (a clinical geneticist) and has had twenty years first-hand experience of working in the hospital system where she had to navigate a similar workplace culture as her protagonist. Taking a surgical unit as the setting enriches the drama of the story, not just because of the heightened life and death context that accompanies operating theatre narratives (as evidenced by many popular television series such as ER, House, Grey’s Anatomy and so on) but because the field of surgery is, more than many specialties, emblematic of privilege, tradition, elitism and other trappings that characterise it as a uniquely male hierarchy.
The strength of this book is that unlike many narratives that explore gender prejudice and bias, this one is unapologetically about women and their particular strengths and weaknesses in working within a system that’s stacked against them. That in this story they ultimately succeed while maintaining their own integrity provides a triumphant ending.
Thank you to Affirm Press for providing me with an advance review copy of the book.
A number of scenes in the early part of the book show her striving to be “one of the boys”. For example, while she often finds the banter of her male colleagues “puerile” and “boring”, she laughs along because “this was my tribe …I wanted to belong”. This is not so much the desire of the outsider to belong, as survival tactics in an environment where she knows not belonging could cost her the career she longs for. That towards the end of the book she looks back and thinks “how strongly I had believed that they were my clan, my surgical brothers” is an indication of the extent to which she deluded herself in blind pursuit of success.
The plot is a development of Carla’s gradual journey from self-delusion through realisation that the only way to confront institutionalised sexism and misogyny is to call it out. That doing so can have drastic results brings her to the final recognition that the only way to beat the system is to step away, regroup and re-engage, accepting that justice on a greater scale than individual career advancement is worth far more and will, in the end, be more rewarding.
Things that detract from an otherwise strong story include unconvincing characters in some cases. Toby, Carla’s boyfriend, for example is painted as utterly obnoxious. It’s hard to understand why an intelligent, reasonably astute woman would be interested in him, despite “the curl of his biceps” or her desire to “smell the money in his aftershave”. Presumably the author wants to show the intensity of Carla’s attraction to him, but the fact that (pre-enlightenment) she goes weak at the knees at his every appearance and engages in behaviour that blatantly jeopardises her career, tends to weaken the case that women don’t engage in the same sexist behaviour as men. Also, Tess of the bouncing curls who tends to “squeal” and clap her hands together at the least provocation comes across as too girlish and silly, even given her relative youth and junior status.
Another shortcoming is the regular use of clunky similes, such as “humiliation chafed like sand in my bathers”, “panic falling away like a shed snakeskin”, “a breeze rustled through the plane trees like a stranger making their way through a crowd”. Sometimes the striving for originality can be counter-productive.
It’s easy to interpret this book as solely an indictment of the misuse of male power in the workplace, but it’s just as much about the unwitting compliance of women in permitting sexual privileges in return for material rewards, (be they jobs or diamond necklaces) especially when it seems blatantly obvious that characters such as Toby, the wandering-handed Benson and the smarmy “silver fox” Geoffrey will rarely behave with any kind of integrity. I’d have liked to see a bit more complexity to Carla, to whom, given her education and profession, the outcomes shouldn’t have come as such a surprise.
But the premise is a compelling one and certainly topical. Female oppression, sexual abuse and rape are plot devices that have been heavily employed in literature, movies and television in recent years, given further impetus by the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement it precipitated. There are some parallels with novels like “Anatomy of a Scandal” by Sarah Vaughan and “Apple Tree Yard” by Louise Doughty, although these stories benefit from more nuanced character development.
This is the author’s first adult novel. It’s an impressive debut and reflects the fact that Susan White is herself a doctor (a clinical geneticist) and has had twenty years first-hand experience of working in the hospital system where she had to navigate a similar workplace culture as her protagonist. Taking a surgical unit as the setting enriches the drama of the story, not just because of the heightened life and death context that accompanies operating theatre narratives (as evidenced by many popular television series such as ER, House, Grey’s Anatomy and so on) but because the field of surgery is, more than many specialties, emblematic of privilege, tradition, elitism and other trappings that characterise it as a uniquely male hierarchy.
The strength of this book is that unlike many narratives that explore gender prejudice and bias, this one is unapologetically about women and their particular strengths and weaknesses in working within a system that’s stacked against them. That in this story they ultimately succeed while maintaining their own integrity provides a triumphant ending.
Thank you to Affirm Press for providing me with an advance review copy of the book.
October 3, 2022
Cut is an emotional journey set just before the #MeToo era that made me shake my head, yell, cry and hope for justice.
The story follows Carla, an ambitious and hard-working young doctor who wants to be the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. To do this, Carla must battle the male-dominated hierarchy and tragically, becomes the victim of a sexual assault that threatens to be the end of her career.
Cleverly told through a series of non-sequential Before-During-After sections which kept me hooked and guessing until the end, Susan White has captured so many moments that any person working in a male-dominated industry will relate to, not just healthcare.
I highly recommend this to anyone who has endured the 'accidental' graze of a male co-worker's hand across a body part you'd rather not have touched, the unwelcome Friday night drinks proposition or the covert/overt bullying that comes after you've stood up for yourself. The Carla of Susan White's Cut could be any of us, and she deserves our attention.
#MeToo
The story follows Carla, an ambitious and hard-working young doctor who wants to be the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. To do this, Carla must battle the male-dominated hierarchy and tragically, becomes the victim of a sexual assault that threatens to be the end of her career.
Cleverly told through a series of non-sequential Before-During-After sections which kept me hooked and guessing until the end, Susan White has captured so many moments that any person working in a male-dominated industry will relate to, not just healthcare.
I highly recommend this to anyone who has endured the 'accidental' graze of a male co-worker's hand across a body part you'd rather not have touched, the unwelcome Friday night drinks proposition or the covert/overt bullying that comes after you've stood up for yourself. The Carla of Susan White's Cut could be any of us, and she deserves our attention.
#MeToo
January 18, 2023
Crisply written with well-defined characters and plot, this fast-moving page-turner explores the systemic difficulties for women doctors in a hospital system established by men with male traditions and customs. A thoughtful take on the issues involved with broader ramifications for organisations beyond Australia's hospital system.
July 13, 2022
Thanks to Better Reading and Affirm press for the ARC
It’s always shocking to think that women can still be treated this way even if only in a novel. I enjoyed the development of the main character as she was lead towards a better understanding of the part we all play in allowing this sexist, misogynistic treatment when we don’t speak up. The snapshots of the ending throughout the book kept me on the edge of my seat. A very timely novel.
It’s always shocking to think that women can still be treated this way even if only in a novel. I enjoyed the development of the main character as she was lead towards a better understanding of the part we all play in allowing this sexist, misogynistic treatment when we don’t speak up. The snapshots of the ending throughout the book kept me on the edge of my seat. A very timely novel.
August 14, 2022
I found Cut a well written novel, steeped in factual experiences that we hear about in the media. At times, I had to keep reminding myself that I was reading a work of fiction. Saying that, I did struggle to connect with the main character, but probably more because I just wanted to shake her and say what the hell are you doing!!
I enjoyed the way the story was presented through a series of flashbacks interwoven with the current day. I found this be an intriguing take on events which heightened the tension throughout the novel.
I did find the ending a bit fairy tale like, yes it was the outcome we all wanted and was deserved, but how often do we find this realistic.
While I did enjoy this novel, I found it lacking something that other reads similar to it possess. Saying that, if I had not read The Registrar by Neela Janakiramanan recently and adored it, I may have enjoyed this one more.
A big thank you to Better Reading and Affirm Press for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I enjoyed the way the story was presented through a series of flashbacks interwoven with the current day. I found this be an intriguing take on events which heightened the tension throughout the novel.
I did find the ending a bit fairy tale like, yes it was the outcome we all wanted and was deserved, but how often do we find this realistic.
While I did enjoy this novel, I found it lacking something that other reads similar to it possess. Saying that, if I had not read The Registrar by Neela Janakiramanan recently and adored it, I may have enjoyed this one more.
A big thank you to Better Reading and Affirm Press for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
July 13, 2022
For most of this book my rating was hovering around the 3 out of 5 mark, good but not great. I’d recently read Neela Janakiramanan’s book The Registrar and I found that the stories were similar and that Carla wasn’t as compelling or relatable a main character as Emma. However, around two-thirds of the way through the book it suddenly switched for me as I started to wonder if I was making some assumptions about the fragments of memory from “that night”.
The real strength of this book is Carla’s relationships with her real, flawed co-workers. We often spend more time with them than our families (particularly in a hospital set drama) and yet we don’t really know them as people. Realising that the entire cast of the book were potentially unreliable or bad people really gave the whole thing an air of a murder mystery. The back cover tells us a crime is committed so trying to work it out in advance was interesting – who were the red herrings, who is sending the weird texts, who was that in the parking garage.
The mystery definitely cranked this up to a 4 out of 5 and a worthwhile, engaging read.
The real strength of this book is Carla’s relationships with her real, flawed co-workers. We often spend more time with them than our families (particularly in a hospital set drama) and yet we don’t really know them as people. Realising that the entire cast of the book were potentially unreliable or bad people really gave the whole thing an air of a murder mystery. The back cover tells us a crime is committed so trying to work it out in advance was interesting – who were the red herrings, who is sending the weird texts, who was that in the parking garage.
The mystery definitely cranked this up to a 4 out of 5 and a worthwhile, engaging read.
October 15, 2023
Initially I found Carla spineless, complacent and judgemental af in every situation before taking a step back and wondering why she needed to be the perfect protagonist. Her character was written realistically (to the point of many faults) as a woman surrounded by a ‘boys club’ culture in a male dominated workplace.
October 5, 2022
This is a very good description of what actually does occurring within hospitals. And pressure of gaining the position one is aiming for. Brilliant read .
June 26, 2025
Institutionalised sexism and misogyny detailed through the experiences of Carla, a young doctor who aims to be the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital.
April 2, 2023
Cut (Affirm Press 2022) by Susan White is indeed a sharp and cutting drama set against the issues of sexism, misogyny and trauma that led to the #METOO movement. Set within a major city hospital surgical team, Cut may be a fictional novel but the characters very much speak the emotional truth of many women’s experiences of harassment, judgement, dodgy professional behaviour and assault that has flooded our media in the past few years. Parts are difficult to read, made all the more poignant because we know that somewhere, for someone, this has been their very real truth, their experience and their fight.
Set in a prestigious Melbourne teaching hospital, Carla is a young doctor with an ambition to be a skilled and compassionate consultant, and when a position becomes available, she must compete with her lover Toby for the job. The tension this creates between the two, and between their friends, makes for a page-turning read. Interspersed with this are the stories of Carla’s patients and medical cases, with each chapter headed with medical terminology that cleverly mimics or foreshadows the human drama that follows. Surgical care is time-sensitive and dependent on doctors to make quick and accurate decisions, often based on limited or incomplete information. Any mistake can literally be fatal. The professors and senior consultants in charge have little patience for younger doctors who hesitate or make an error, and even less patience for female doctors, who it seems must work twice as hard and three times as long (and also learn to play golf with the boys) before they are considered equal. In this intense, exhausting and high stakes environment, Carla must double-think her every move, gesture, comment (and choice of skirt), to ensure she doesn’t fall short.
But what rachets the tension up even further is that the book is divided into sections of Before, During and After, fragmented memories which are randomly distributed throughout the otherwise chronological timeline. It is clear early on that these refer to a particular event, an assault at a workplace dinner, that leaves Carla traumatised. As the novel develops, with Carla determined to gain the consultant position, while supporting other younger women suffering from workplace misogyny, attempting to keep her relationship with Toby going, and somehow managing to also have a personal and family life, the memories of that traumatic night return to her again and again, triggering her emotional state. She is mortified that she didn’t do more. Ashamed and embarrassed that it happened in the first place. Angry that someone put her in that position. Terrified that reporting it will jeopardise her work goals. The more time passes, the more rage-fuelled she becomes as she realises that it is not an isolated incident, but rather an invidious and toxic workplace culture that she – and all women – must fight.
Themes of power, misogyny, entitlement, narcissism, sexism, trauma and assault are explored through specific questions about surgical risks, generational attitudes, unconscious bias, boundaries between doctors and their patients and between the authority of professionals and the desires of those they treat. Author Susan White is a doctor and this novel is similar in style and tone to The Registrar by Neela Janakiramanan. An unflinching and honest account of a flawed system.
Set in a prestigious Melbourne teaching hospital, Carla is a young doctor with an ambition to be a skilled and compassionate consultant, and when a position becomes available, she must compete with her lover Toby for the job. The tension this creates between the two, and between their friends, makes for a page-turning read. Interspersed with this are the stories of Carla’s patients and medical cases, with each chapter headed with medical terminology that cleverly mimics or foreshadows the human drama that follows. Surgical care is time-sensitive and dependent on doctors to make quick and accurate decisions, often based on limited or incomplete information. Any mistake can literally be fatal. The professors and senior consultants in charge have little patience for younger doctors who hesitate or make an error, and even less patience for female doctors, who it seems must work twice as hard and three times as long (and also learn to play golf with the boys) before they are considered equal. In this intense, exhausting and high stakes environment, Carla must double-think her every move, gesture, comment (and choice of skirt), to ensure she doesn’t fall short.
But what rachets the tension up even further is that the book is divided into sections of Before, During and After, fragmented memories which are randomly distributed throughout the otherwise chronological timeline. It is clear early on that these refer to a particular event, an assault at a workplace dinner, that leaves Carla traumatised. As the novel develops, with Carla determined to gain the consultant position, while supporting other younger women suffering from workplace misogyny, attempting to keep her relationship with Toby going, and somehow managing to also have a personal and family life, the memories of that traumatic night return to her again and again, triggering her emotional state. She is mortified that she didn’t do more. Ashamed and embarrassed that it happened in the first place. Angry that someone put her in that position. Terrified that reporting it will jeopardise her work goals. The more time passes, the more rage-fuelled she becomes as she realises that it is not an isolated incident, but rather an invidious and toxic workplace culture that she – and all women – must fight.
Themes of power, misogyny, entitlement, narcissism, sexism, trauma and assault are explored through specific questions about surgical risks, generational attitudes, unconscious bias, boundaries between doctors and their patients and between the authority of professionals and the desires of those they treat. Author Susan White is a doctor and this novel is similar in style and tone to The Registrar by Neela Janakiramanan. An unflinching and honest account of a flawed system.
August 18, 2022
I found “Cut” to be a very thought-provoking book, and more than once I had to remind myself that I was reading a piece of fiction. Too often I found myself cringing and the misogyny that seemed part of the day to day hospital culture which the young and aspiring female doctors had to fight against.
While normally not a fan of books that jump rapidly between different characters or perspectives, in this case the style worked well.
The central character, Carla, is very likeable – strong when she needs to be (well, mostly) but still with layers of vulnerability, to which we warm. I found myself wanting to give more than one of the ogres masquerading as department leads a really good slap!
My hope is that this remains a work of fiction, and that recent years have progressed society past accepting such behaviours as the norm in environments that until recently had been perceived as a male-dominated place.
My thanks to Better Reading and Affirm Press for an advanced copy of this book.
While normally not a fan of books that jump rapidly between different characters or perspectives, in this case the style worked well.
The central character, Carla, is very likeable – strong when she needs to be (well, mostly) but still with layers of vulnerability, to which we warm. I found myself wanting to give more than one of the ogres masquerading as department leads a really good slap!
My hope is that this remains a work of fiction, and that recent years have progressed society past accepting such behaviours as the norm in environments that until recently had been perceived as a male-dominated place.
My thanks to Better Reading and Affirm Press for an advanced copy of this book.
February 28, 2023
In Cut, author Susan White (a doctor herself) provides a shocking insight into the “old boys’ club” that obviously still exists in some male-dominated work cultures. In this case, protagonist Carla, a talented surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital must navigate the slippery slope of sexist and misogynistic behaviour in order to advance her career. The plot throws up the dilemma she faces daily; does she become one of the “boys” and laugh off questionable jokes, comments and actions; does she just “grin and bear” it; does she risk being ostracised and viewed as a feminazi if she takes a stand? Flashbacks of a past event permeate the main story, which, when revealed, ultimately brings issues to a head. This was very readable and felt totally credible. There were a number of strong female characters as well as Carla who were able to support each other. I must admit to feeling outraged that women are still subjected to this level of discrimination and toxic masculinity in the day to day lives.
July 14, 2022
Thank you to Affirm Press and Better Reading Preview for my ARC.
This was an engrossing read about mostly young Doctors trying to find their place in a major Melbourne hospital. The workplace is definitely a "boys club" run by sexist, misogynistic male surgeons. The main character Carla strives to be the first female surgeon at the hospital and it's a battle every step of the way. There are lots of medical terms and walk throughs on operations with plenty of drama during the operations and with some of the patients. Carla gives her patients the honesty and kindness they deserve and I found the part when she confronted her patient Liv about her botched surgery intense and emotional.
The descriptions of the creepy pervert Dr Benson were very real and made my skin crawl.
The chapter titles have medical terms and also Before, During and After, in reference to the assault on Carla. Overall, a good, engrossing story that flowed well.
This was an engrossing read about mostly young Doctors trying to find their place in a major Melbourne hospital. The workplace is definitely a "boys club" run by sexist, misogynistic male surgeons. The main character Carla strives to be the first female surgeon at the hospital and it's a battle every step of the way. There are lots of medical terms and walk throughs on operations with plenty of drama during the operations and with some of the patients. Carla gives her patients the honesty and kindness they deserve and I found the part when she confronted her patient Liv about her botched surgery intense and emotional.
The descriptions of the creepy pervert Dr Benson were very real and made my skin crawl.
The chapter titles have medical terms and also Before, During and After, in reference to the assault on Carla. Overall, a good, engrossing story that flowed well.
August 17, 2022
‘It dawned on me that it was the females who had to carry the burden of vigilance.’
‘You never get used to oppression. You just get worn down by it.’
In Cut, Susan White bestows upon us an alarmingly insightful look into deeply ingrained sexist and misogynistic cultures that still permeate current society. Carla, a budding doctor striving to become a female surgeon in a male dominated hospital, faces prejudice from her colleagues and mentors on a daily basis. She brushes off much of it in an attempt to assimilate with the toxic patriarchy as a strategy to win their respect and her own promotion. But, Carla comes to learn that the “boys club” will always band around their own in spite of her allegiance and she must turn to her female allies to empower them and herself in the fight for feminist justice. An excellent and timely read, full of tension, turmoil and triumph. Thank you Better Reading Preview for the advanced copy.
‘You never get used to oppression. You just get worn down by it.’
In Cut, Susan White bestows upon us an alarmingly insightful look into deeply ingrained sexist and misogynistic cultures that still permeate current society. Carla, a budding doctor striving to become a female surgeon in a male dominated hospital, faces prejudice from her colleagues and mentors on a daily basis. She brushes off much of it in an attempt to assimilate with the toxic patriarchy as a strategy to win their respect and her own promotion. But, Carla comes to learn that the “boys club” will always band around their own in spite of her allegiance and she must turn to her female allies to empower them and herself in the fight for feminist justice. An excellent and timely read, full of tension, turmoil and triumph. Thank you Better Reading Preview for the advanced copy.
December 19, 2022
There are some books which stay with you long after you read them. American Dirt springs to mind, Donna Tart's Goldfinch is another. This book is not so intense but still gripping. I suspect that when you get to a certain age, you will have had an experience like a few in this book which is why I found it so enthralling. How do you find the courage to act when your action may lose you the calling you feel so passionate about? How do you speak up when you know those who have in the past have just had their files buried and ignored? Is there an honorable and honest way to even speak up? You are either believed or not believed, especially when those who sit in judgement are middle-aged, traditional men who feel entitled. And then speaking up can be as devastating as the act you speak up against.
I loved this book. The characters are not heroes, they're normal people who want to do their job. The courage for them to try to make a change is compelling reading.
I loved this book. The characters are not heroes, they're normal people who want to do their job. The courage for them to try to make a change is compelling reading.
August 8, 2022
📖 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙩:
Carla is a young doctor striving to become the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When a job pops up, she competes with her lover and thinks she can be judged on her merit. But an assault after a boozy workplace dinner leaves her traumatized and struggling to cope with the misogyny coming from her workplace. Following the night from her assault, Carla begins a fight for justice.
💭 𝙈𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨:
•I enjoyed this!
•Filled with drama and women trying to make a stand in the workplace.
•It was a great read and it will have you hooked after a few pages.
•Carla is such an amazing, inspiring and true character. Especially owning up to the mistakes of surgery.
•The way the males were described, it gave me chills.
•What I loved the most is how much this story evolved. From staying quiet to speaking up and then making a difference.
•There were a lot medical terms which I found it a bit hard to catch on.
This book should be an inspiration for all women.
My rating: 3.5/5
Carla is a young doctor striving to become the first female surgeon at a prestigious Melbourne hospital. When a job pops up, she competes with her lover and thinks she can be judged on her merit. But an assault after a boozy workplace dinner leaves her traumatized and struggling to cope with the misogyny coming from her workplace. Following the night from her assault, Carla begins a fight for justice.
💭 𝙈𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨:
•I enjoyed this!
•Filled with drama and women trying to make a stand in the workplace.
•It was a great read and it will have you hooked after a few pages.
•Carla is such an amazing, inspiring and true character. Especially owning up to the mistakes of surgery.
•The way the males were described, it gave me chills.
•What I loved the most is how much this story evolved. From staying quiet to speaking up and then making a difference.
•There were a lot medical terms which I found it a bit hard to catch on.
This book should be an inspiration for all women.
My rating: 3.5/5
November 8, 2022
Susan White is a Melbourne based writer and doctor. This is her first novel for adults and comes out of the Me Too movement and various allegations that have been reported in local papers about sex discrimination and bullying in the medical profession and especially in surgery.
Set in a prestigious Melbourne hospital Carla is a young doctor who aims to make her career there as a surgeon. Told in flashbacks the story delves into the male orientated culture, the sexism and misogyny. Carla herself makes some poor choices, especially in trying to be "one of the boys" and in her choice of sexual partner and love interest.
It was very readable and had an air of authenticity. I thought that there were a few too many characters, and it became a bit hard to keep track of who was who but worthwhile reading and always nice to recognize local settings around inner city Melbourne.
Set in a prestigious Melbourne hospital Carla is a young doctor who aims to make her career there as a surgeon. Told in flashbacks the story delves into the male orientated culture, the sexism and misogyny. Carla herself makes some poor choices, especially in trying to be "one of the boys" and in her choice of sexual partner and love interest.
It was very readable and had an air of authenticity. I thought that there were a few too many characters, and it became a bit hard to keep track of who was who but worthwhile reading and always nice to recognize local settings around inner city Melbourne.
November 16, 2022
This is a really cutting edge (pun intended) book that challenges our presumptions of the reasons why women try to fit into a man’s world and the ramifications for when they stand up to the culture that penalises those that speak out. Set just prior to the #metoo movement, this narrative explores the challenges of an ambitious and talented female surgeon who is grappling with the ambivalence of the male colleagues in her life, who are both her mentors and friends, but also the perpetrators or enablers and her changing perspectives of the play out of sexism, feminism and power in a dynamic and patriarchal inner-city Melbourne hospital. The really interesting component are the points of view of women from different generations (boomer, Gen X and millennial) that have had to cope with the same pervasive culture and how they deal with it. It’s a book that makes you think but is also a very enjoyable read.
June 21, 2023
White’s book is another lid lifting on the sexism and misogyny that appears to be prevalent in the medical world. Recent fiction by Sonia Henry and Neela Janakiramanan also explored this topic; the unique difficulties facing females trying to make the ‘cut’ in surgery and medicine. White gives us Carla, a doctor in her mid-thirties who is vying for a coveted consultant job at a prestigious inner city hospital. Carla takes on the older, white male patriarchy in attempt to get the job she wants. She even goes as far as taking up golf, as this is apparently where all the male doctors broker their ‘deals’. To her credit White does not paint Carla as a saintly doctor, indeed she is someone who can make poor decisions in her professional and private life. For all her rebelling against the patriarchy Carla cannot somehow see that she is in a toxic relationship with a colleague. White handles very well a devastating incident for Carla, telling us at the start that this incident can only be recalled ‘sideways’. It is told in flashback as White slowly reveals what happened to Carla. This made it a well plotted book, but less impressive was when some parts start to veer into ‘chick lit’ territory. There is a sensitive musician from Carla’s past who is conveniently there to help her pick up the pieces, a tad too good to be true! As White is an actual doctor I can only assume that this type of sexism is something female physicians are enduring. If this book is the latest one in the call for cultural and systemic change - I am all for it. This book is recommended, but do heed the ‘trigger warning’ at the start.
January 11, 2023
incredibly raw and important. Australia’s #MeToo never quite got the momentum it needed, and books like this are vital to changing that.
i applaud the intelligent ways that White wove in timelines of past, during, and after. We know something bad will happen. The tension, unease and constant teasers of “how far will this man go?” showcase boys club mentality and the certainty of how even the “best men” can make women uncomfortable at any given time. regardless of whether they’ve been friend or foe, previously. there’s a way women must hold their breath around men in their life, expectant of something horrible to happen at any given point, and lines to be crossed and blurred.
men are the problem. men benefit from other men’s bad behaviour.
this must be changed.
i applaud the intelligent ways that White wove in timelines of past, during, and after. We know something bad will happen. The tension, unease and constant teasers of “how far will this man go?” showcase boys club mentality and the certainty of how even the “best men” can make women uncomfortable at any given time. regardless of whether they’ve been friend or foe, previously. there’s a way women must hold their breath around men in their life, expectant of something horrible to happen at any given point, and lines to be crossed and blurred.
men are the problem. men benefit from other men’s bad behaviour.
this must be changed.
January 28, 2023
Dr Carla di Pietra is a mid career surgeon working at a fictitious hospital in Melbourne (whose location is very suspiciously similar to that of the Royal Children's Hospital in Parkville - a familar setting for the author). As Carla attempts to progress her career and break glass ceilings, she begins to learn some institutions are not ready to update the rules of the "Boys club". Carla comes to realise that for women to be safe and thrive at work, women can no longer seek permission to join the club, they need to completely dismantle it! Set in the year leading up to the #MeToo movement, "Cut" explores the varied and vast layers of misogyny and sexism that women still face in the workplace (and society). This book will certainly stir a fire in your belly!
September 5, 2022
A disturbing but very good novel. Presented as fiction, but sadly I suspect a fair amount of fact underpinning this story.
Set in a major Melbourne hospital's surgical unit, it paints a picture of institutionalised sexism and misogyny.
Set in 2014, Carla is on the path to becoming the first female surgeon with a consulting post, working her way through the men's club at the hospital. It's not till she is asked by a younger aspiring surgeon to mentor her that Carla begins to view the workplace differently, and begins to question the norms.
A provocative read.
Set in a major Melbourne hospital's surgical unit, it paints a picture of institutionalised sexism and misogyny.
Set in 2014, Carla is on the path to becoming the first female surgeon with a consulting post, working her way through the men's club at the hospital. It's not till she is asked by a younger aspiring surgeon to mentor her that Carla begins to view the workplace differently, and begins to question the norms.
A provocative read.
November 8, 2022
This book is proof that for a women to make it in a highly prestigious role that is typically male dominated that she has to change who she is and “act like one of the guys” to even be considered. It is a cleverly delivered depiction of sexist workplace corruption and female suppression. A world that we live in today where men still think they are entitled to take whatever they want when they are in positions of power forgetting that they also have a duty of care. Despicable, empowering, heartbreaking and completely corrupt.
July 31, 2023
I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was fascinating, thrilling and shocking.
I did feel some of the writing was a little glib, but it was certainly relatable in terms of the main protagonist- Carla and her experiences with men and being a working woman, however the medical context was not. However, if I was a medical professional I would probably relate to it.
The #metoo themes in this book were right on trend and quite confronting. I think this is the start of a great journey for this author- Susan White.
I did feel some of the writing was a little glib, but it was certainly relatable in terms of the main protagonist- Carla and her experiences with men and being a working woman, however the medical context was not. However, if I was a medical professional I would probably relate to it.
The #metoo themes in this book were right on trend and quite confronting. I think this is the start of a great journey for this author- Susan White.
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October 24, 2023Picked this one up from the library based on the cover and a quick glance at the synopsis.
The chapters move between "before/during/after" and I can't remember if it's set up at the start that this relates to a sexual assault or if I just read that on the synopsis, but either way the book builds skillfully towards this.
Nearly every male introduced in the book comes to seem like a potential rapist... which I guess is the point, and again leaves you wondering who the perpetrator is going to be.
The chapters move between "before/during/after" and I can't remember if it's set up at the start that this relates to a sexual assault or if I just read that on the synopsis, but either way the book builds skillfully towards this.
Nearly every male introduced in the book comes to seem like a potential rapist... which I guess is the point, and again leaves you wondering who the perpetrator is going to be.
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