Exploring the History of Medicine

Exploring

by John Hudson Tiner

From surgery to vaccines, man has made great strides in the field of medicine. Quality of life has improved dramatically in the last few decades alone, and the future is bright. But students must not forget that God provided humans with minds and resources to bring about these advances. A biblical perspective of healing and the use of medicine provides the best foundation for treating diseases and injury. In Exploring the World of Medicine , author John Hudson Tiner reveals the spectacular discoveries that started with men and women who used their abilities to better mankind and give glory to God. The fascinating history of medicine comes alive in this book, providing students with a healthy dose of facts, mini-biographies, and vintage illustrations. Includes chapter tests and index.

Genres: Science, History, Nonfiction, School, Christian, Stem, Medicine

165 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

About the author

John Hudson Tiner is a lifelong educator, and has acquired a reputation for writing clearly about science. He has wide-ranging interests, and has also written about American history and several of the sciences. He and his wife, Jeanene, live in Missouri.

Reviews

[Laura (kroosreadsandreviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book! It told the background behind medical discoveries from a Christian perspective. I learned a lot!

[✧*̥˚ Jordyn *˚✧ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend has been loaning me a few books and gave me this one to read. At first I thought it looked a little boring and like something you'd have to read in school or something, but I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

Before this book I had read a few other books by John Hudson Tiner and if you haven't read anything by him yet I recommend that you do. Like Isaac Newton: The True Story of His Life or Louis Pasteur: Founder of Modern Medicine which I enjoyed as well.

It is written by a Christian author and I enjoyed the perspective. Usually trying to read things about science doesn't align with my beliefs but it was nice to see this book did.
It did seem like it was geared towards more of a Middle-School aged group but I still enjoyed learning about the topics and discoveries.

To be honest I didn't know much about some of the discoveries, so it was nice to not only read about the discovery details but also about the people who made the discovery.

It was also nice that the book chapters stayed in order and some of them cohered with the next. And the nice touch of pictures/art as pictures help me to retain information and connect with the chapter.

Overall, it was a great book if you're interested in learning more about scientific discoveries made by Christian scientists/chemists etc and their details. If you are a Christian (or not) and are between the ages of 11 and 16 and are even slightly interested in the history of medicine (or just history or medicine) I would recommend you read this.

Recommended ages: 6th grade- 11th

[Hannah Mozingo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating exploration of the history of medicine and the greatest medical discoveries of all time. I enjoyed how it was told in a story-style, clear and easy to grasp. Only complaint is that it is perhaps a bit more basic than I'm used to. But overall a highly educative and enjoyable read!

[m a e g a n ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating history of medicine. Filled with facts, biographies, and illustrations, we enjoyed this book very much!

[Syd · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok. I rate it a 2 3/4. Don't get me wrong, there was a lot of interesting stuff in here, and I learned a few things, but I'm just not into science too much. And since it was part of my school readings, that might hv something 2 do w\ it.
It is defs an easy read tho.

Recommended ages 10 & up.

[Raiann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for homeschooling. I found it to be interesting and provide good information on the topic, all while keeping a Christian view.

[Abby Libby · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favorite that shaped my thinking on science, health, and human nature.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Exploring the History of Medicine" provides an overview of advances in medicine from ancient to modern times in the context of the people who discovered key medical advances. It's easy to read and understand and the few technical terms were defined in the text. There were also interesting black and white pictures and illustrations. At the end of each chapter, there were 8-17 questions that tested if you learned the important points in the chapter. The answer key was in the back. The book is suitable for middle schoolers on up.

The author mentioned it when the scientist or doctor being discussed was a Christian. Overall, the book was interesting and well-written. I'd highly recommend it to those interested in gaining a basic overview of advances made in medicine throughout history.


Chapter 1 talked about ancient physicians (Imhotep, Hippocrates, Galen) and what they contributed to medical knowledge. Chapter 2 talked about what Galen got wrong and how that affected medicine in the Middle Ages and beyond. Chapter 3 talked about advances in knowledge about human anatomy by Andreas Vesalius. Chapter 4 talked about the father of modern surgery, Ambroise Pare. Chapter 5 talked about the discoveries about blood circulation made by William Harvey and David Fabricius.

Chapter 6 talked about microscopes and the discoveries Antoni van Leeuwenhoek made using them. Chapter 7 talked about small pox and Edward Jenner. Chapter 8 talked about advances in surgical pain killers made by Humphry Davy and by James Young Simpson. Chapter 9 talked about advances in surgical pain killers made by William Morton. Chapter 10 talked about the discoveries about the spread of diseases made by Ignaz Semmelweiss.

Chapter 11 talked about discoveries made by Louis Pasteur. Chapter 12 talked about Joseph Lister and antiseptic surgery. Chapter 13 talked about Robert Koch and the germ theory of disease. Chapter 14 talked about Louis Pasteur and advances in vaccine development. Chapter 15 talked about James Lind and the cure for scurvy. Chapter 16 talked about Christiaan Eijkman finding a cure for beriberi and Jean Boussingault finding a cure for goiter.

Chapter 17 talked about William Crookes' discovery of cathode rays and Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of x-rays. Chapter 18 talked about Henri Becquerel and Pierre and Marie Curie and the discovery of radioactive elements. Chapter 19 talked about Gerhard Domagk's discovery of sulfa drugs. Chapter 20 talked about the discovery of penicillin and Alexander Fleming, Howard Florey, and Ernst Chain. Chapter 21 talked about Charles Drew and blood transfusions, Christiaan Barnard and organ transplants, Willem Kolff and the artificial kidney, James Watson and Francis Crick and DNA.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being a bit squeamish, I was not sure that this would be a good book for me to read, but my kids needed to read it for school, so I did, and I am so glad I did. It did a wonderful job of explaining medicine from the time of Galen through the early/mid 1900s. I learned so much, and I did not get too squeamish at all. If you are wanting to see how quickly medicine has developed and gain an understanding of how much we likely don't know, this is a great book to read. I recommend it to adults and upper elementary aged children alike.

[The Hofs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doesnt this title sound like a great excuse for a nap? This book has been such a pleasant surprise for now the third child in our family to read it. There is a spontaneous narration every single time the book is read. Tiner has an excellent ability to educate and delight the reader. We are looking forward to adding his newest release to our collection.

[Amy Best · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this along with my 7th grader (though could also be enjoyed by those a bit younger) to go along with our study of anatomy. We both found it fascinating- reads more like a story than a textbook.

[Lydia Clayton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was very interesting. I liked how they were questions at the end of each chapter and answers in the back of the book so I could check my answers is was very easy to understand, even though I didn’t know much about medicine

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was entertaining and interesting while presenting pioneers of medicine.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of information presented in an enjoyable way.

[Leah West · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book- -along with all the others in the series- -and they all are written so well. I love that I these books have a Christian point of view and tell me more than just what these chemists and doctors are known for- - as in discoveries and such- -But also more about them personally. I learned that a lot of the people that I look up to are Christians as well, and that’s really encouraging! I hope whoever’s reading this feels the same way and gives these books a try.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read aloud. Not necessarily for a Charlotte Mason purist. But it worked for us. My five oldest really enjoyed listening to this. Short passages with large amounts of information. However we learned a great deal, had lots of discussion, and plan to read more in depth on a few of the scientists mentioned.
Checked off for our health credit 👍 in my opinion, which isn’t always an easy one to complete.
Thanks Tiner for a good time. 🥳
Plan to read more of the series in the near future.

[Noelle Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent homeschool text for my 6th and 7th grade despite the fact it is being geared to 9-12 th grade. My 7th grader loved it so much that she asked to learn about the history of chemistry, so we are going to the next book in hm the series called Exploring the History of Chemistry. The book has true and false questions, but I also purchased the test questions separately.

[Dagny Steed · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes you all over the world. It takes you to times you only dream about, discovering new ways to help people that are still used now. I really enjoyed this book, it’s very interesting, and I really encourage you to read it.

[Jiamelishua Ammons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent read! I enjoyed reading all the materials on doctors, scientists, chemists, also who first noticed and discoveries varies things to fight off infections. I actually wish that this book was longer. Very good resource of information.😊

[Eleanor · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting. which is just about what all my ratings so far!
it mentioned people I didn't even know about and their discovery's, and it did it in a very interesting way.

[Jessa Bame · Rating 5 out of 5]

Basic vaccine/medicine history/education with a Christian aspect.

[Joyfully Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chose this for school and I loved it. Would highly recommend for someone who is passionate about the medical field. :)

[angeline (taylor's version) · Rating 2 out of 5]

for school :(

[Devon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting information!

[mairiachi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't judge a book by its cover, or in this case by its illustrations either because they both suck.

But the book doesn't! For a history book, it's one of the best I've ever read. Of course, it is about medicine so it should be interesting. But it's just a very clean, even read and I've never found a history book I liked better. Weird, right?

So I really enjoyed it, yes. So it's four stars, yes. But I'm rating it by "yes it was four stars 'I really liked it' because compared to other history books and medicine books, it's really good". So in comparison to other books like it, not in comparison to other books like fiction or bios or anything, this was a good book. If I were comparing it to all books I would give it three stars (fiction trumps most books).

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

My dd11 didn't really like this book very much but I think it was the subject, not the book's fault. I thought the subjects were interesting and it was great to see how medicine has changed over time and how hard some people had to fight to get new ideas out there.

Proving my point, my ds11 really enjoyed this book and told me all the fun stuff he was learning from it. I also enjoyed the background stories.

[Dora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book for the kids as part of our HS curriculum. We loved it so much, that I decided to put it here. We learned a lot from it, had great discussions after reading each chapter. Well written and interesting.

[Ria]

This book was awesome! I was hoping it would have a little more Egyptian medicine in it, but no school book is ever perfect, except for The Story of Inventions.

[Jennifer Sahlstrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for the first time in 2011 and it sparked an interest in such science-y reading. Not certain if I would read it again but it was definitely an interesting read.

[Leichty Library]

Copies: 1