Reddit UES Bookclub discussion

Did you like the book? Would you recommend it to other people/book clubs?


Is this a subject or genre you typically read? Did the book inspire or discourage you from looking for other books on this subject?

What was a surprising or interesting fact that you learned? What would you have liked to learn more about that the book didn’t cover?


What did you think of how the book was organized? For those with the physical book, did the images add to the reading experience? If you did not have images, do you think you were lacking anything?


What were your perception of medieval times before reading this book? Did this book confirm or disconfirm those perceptions?


What practices did medical practitioners have that you find strange now? In what ways did those practices shape the way we look at medicine today?


How did politics and religion play a role in medicine in medieval times? How do they play a role today?


How does Hartnell’s approach to discussing the human body differ from Mary Roach’s, in her book “Stiff?” How are they similar? How do you think each author views the role of history in understanding the body in the present?


Page 14 depicts a diagram from the Thorney Computus, which connects astrological signs to elements to the seasons and more, to the human body. What do you think of this all-connected view of the body?


What did you think about the idea that medical professionals were so tied to past procedure to the point of performing acts that they knew would harm patient, because “that’s how it was always done?”