Book Review: War Doctor: Surgery on the Front Line by David Nott

War Doctor

by

David Nott

Surgery on the Front line

Publisher: Pan Macmillan 
Imprint: Picador
Publication date: 26th February 2019
Genre: Memoir / Non Fiction
Pages: 320
RRP:  $29.99AUD
Format read: Trade paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

For more than twenty-five years, David Nott has taken unpaid leave from his job as a general and vascular surgeon with the NHS to volunteer in some of the world's most dangerous war zones. From Sarajevo under siege in 1993, to clandestine hospitals in rebel-held eastern Aleppo, he has carried out life-saving operations and field surgery in the most challenging conditions, and with none of the resources of a major London teaching hospital.

The conflicts he has worked in form a chronology of twenty-first-century combat: Afghanistan, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Darfur, Congo, Iraq, Yemen, Libya, Gaza and Syria. But he has also volunteered in areas blighted by natural disasters, such as the earthquakes in Haiti and Nepal.

Driven both by compassion and passion, the desire to help others and the thrill of extreme personal danger, he is now widely acknowledged to be the most experienced trauma surgeon in the world. But as time has gone on, David Nott began to realize that flying into to a catastrophe - whether war or natural disaster - was not enough. Doctors on the ground needed to learn how to treat the appalling injuries that war inflicts upon its victims. Since 2015, the Foundation he set up with his wife, Elly, has disseminated the knowledge he has gained, training other doctors in the art of saving lives threatened by bombs and bullets.

David Nott has written a compassionate story of his years as a volunteer surgeon working in hospitals around the world in war torn areas in Afghanistan, Sarajevo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan, Darfur, Yemen and Gaza. Operating in poorly equipped hospitals with the most basic of instruments.

Nott didn’t come from a privileged background. He describes his sometimes harsh and lonely upbringing. He has achieved his accomplishments through hard work and perseverance. There were wins and failures along the way.

It’s hard for a book like this, with David in the centre of some quite political wars, to not be political however he steers clear of taking sides giving the reader facts and eye witness accounts.

David Nott comes across as humble and sensitive. The inhumanity he witnesses has a profound effect on him and he finds it hard to fit back into normal life. Nott explains his need to help people and the pull to be amidst the trouble and constant danger of a war zone, operating while missiles are reigning down and during sudden blackouts. Survival sometimes was just pure luck.

War Doctor is a fascinating and humbling account of a doctor’s life in a war zone. Written with real compassion for all humankind. David Nott is a true humanitarian.

An emotional afterword by David’s wife Eleanor is filled with love and pride.

  My rating 4.5/5           ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Photo credit Goodreads

David Nott is a Welsh consultant surgeon, specializing in general and vascular surgery. He works mainly in London hospitals, but for more than twenty-five years he has also volunteered to work in disaster and war zones. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2012 Birthday Honours and in 2016 he received the Robert Burns Humanitarian Award and the Pride of Britain Award. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters. 

 

Book Review: The Hidden Beach by Karen Swan

The Hidden Beach

by

Karen Swan

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia 
Publication date: 28th April 2020
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Romance
Pages: 400 
RRP: $32.99AUD
Format read: paperback 
Source: courtesy of the publisher

 In picturesque Stockholm, Bell Everhurst is working as a nanny for the perfect family. Hanna and Max Mogerts are parents to 9 year-old Linus, and 3-year old twins Elise and Tilde. 
One morning, as she’s rushing for the school run, Bell answers the phone – and everything changes. A woman from a clinic asks her to pass on the urgent message that Hanna’s husband is awake.Bell is confused. Max left the house just a few minutes earlier.
But soon the truth comes tumbling out: Hanna’s first husband fell into a coma seven years earlier, following an accident. Now he's awake. And he wants his family back.
As the city empties and everyone relocates for the summer to the beautiful tiny islands of the archipelago, they are all in crisis. Old wounds and new loves cannot exist side by side. Someone has to lose.
Caught in the middle, Bell tries to hold them all together, but she unwittingly becomes part of the problem. Under the midsummer sun, everything hangs in the balance - until a secret finally emerges that will decode all their fates.

Each year I look forward to Karen Swan’s latest offerings with their mysterious plots and evocative locations. More than ever, this year, armchair travel is the way to be taken away and immersed in the beautiful atmosphere of faraway places.

Bell, a 26 year old Britain now living in Stockholm, works as a nanny for the Mogert family – Hanna, Max, 3yo twins Elise & Tilde and 9yo Linus. Bell loved the children and quite often went above and beyond the regular nanny role working overtime. The Mogerts were like the perfect family until the phone call that Hanna’s husband had awoken from a 7 year coma comes. A call that could tear them apart.

Set in the idyllic archipelago islands where the family head for their summer holidays. Karen Swan skillfully depicts the carefree summer lifestyle but there is an underlying ominous feeling as Hanna goes out one night and Bell finds the children asleep, alone in the house.

Through The Hidden Beach Karen Swan explores the theme of family, what makes a family, the loss of family and a parent’s right to see their child. Bell feels the Mogerts are like family, she loves the children. But does she go above her nanny status when thinking there is making bad decisions regarding the children.

I loved that throughout the story we also had a good look at Bell’s personal life, outside her nanny job. Her friends were a fun lot and really cared about her.

Flash backs to earlier years built on the mystery and the twists come on subtley but have no less of an impact when revealed.

At times compelling and at other times heart-wrenching the anticipation and not knowing what was to come makes The Hidden Beach a captivating read.

  My rating 5/5           ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

photo credit: Goodreads

 Karen Swan began her career in fashion journalism before giving it all up to raise her three children and to pursue her ambition of becoming a writer. Her titles include Christmas in the Snow, Christmas at Tiffany's and The Summer Without You. She lives in Sussex and writes her books from a treehouse overlooking the Downs.

  

Click on the links below to read the reviews of other Karen Swan books I've read.
The Christmas Lights
The Christmas Party
The Spanish Promise
The Greek Escape

 

Book Review: An Alice Girl by Tanya Heaslip

An Alice Girl

by

Tanya Heaslip

Publisher:  Allen & Unwin
Publication date: 19th May 2020
Genre: Non Fiction / Memoir
Pages: 344
RRP: $32.99 AUD
Format read: Paperback
Source: Courtesy of the publisher

An extraordinary story of growing up in the late 1960s and early 70s on an outback cattle property

Whether working the mobs of cattle with the stockmen, playing cattleduffing on horseback or singing and doing lessons at their School of the Air desks, Tanya Heaslip and her siblings led a childhood unimaginable to many Australians. Growing up on a vast and isolated cattle property just north of Alice Springs, Tanya tells of wild rides, of making far-flung friends over the Air, of the dangers, the fun and the back-breaking work. As the eldest child, her added responsibility was to look after the littler ones, so she was by their sides dealing with snakes, the threat of bushfires and broken bones.

Tanya's parents, Janice and Grant 'the Boss' Heaslip, were pioneers. They developed Bond Springs Station where water was scarce, where power was dependent on generators and where a trip to town for supplies meant a full day's journey. Grant was determined to teach his children how to survive in this severe
environment and his lessons were often harsh. In a childhood that most would consider very tough, Tanya tells of this precious time with raw honesty, humour, love and kindness. This is the story of an Alice girl.

 

An Alice Girl is the memoir of Tanya Heaslip’s life growing up on a remote cattle station just north of Alice Springs. The story includes her parents early life. Tanya’s memoir is a candid warts and all tale of growing up in this harsh land. Their triumphs and struggles.

Life was hard and filled with responsibility not only for the adults, the children were expected to work as well. Tanya tells of long days helping her father with the stock and the deep connection to the land that develops when it is your life blood, your whole existence. I was actually a bit shocked at how hard the children had to work.

“the land would soon shape the way I felt and thought and lived. It was like an anchor deep inside, holding me fast to the rocks and earth and hills around me.”

Governesses, school of the air, illness, snakes, redbacks, accidents, lack of water, fire; life lessons were hard in such an isolated place.

“We knew that death was ever present in our world. Many things could kill us in the bush.”

Tanya’s life although remote was also filled with friendship and community get togethers and I could just picture the family squashed together in the Heaslip’s little plane, hot and excited, off to visit friends and family.

Even though the Heaslip children’s lives were busy they still did many things me and my siblings did as children of the 70’s. Much the same games and activities, although I must admit we had a lot more free time. Tanya’s most memorable present of a typewriter when she was 10 brought back my own memories of receiving a typewriter for Christmas when I was 11 and like Tanya it was my most precious present ever.

The 24 pages of colour plate photographs of the Heaslip family makes you feel like you are a treasured friend sharing in their life.

Tanya’s memoir ends at the age of 12 as she leaves to attend boarding school. A heart-wrenching scene. But we all know Tanya goes on to great adventures in Alice in Prague. However her love for the land never leaves her.

An Alice Girl is an awe inspiring story of hardship, endurance, determination and ultimately triumph over the elements to make a living in the harshest of conditions.

My rating 4/5          ⭐⭐⭐⭐

 
Tanya Heaslip was born on a cattle station in outback Australia at the height of the Cold War. She grew up to study and then practice Law. In 1989 she travelled to Europe for the first time and in 1994 she moved to the Czech Republic where she taught English for two and a half years. Tanya's first memoir, Alice to Prague, was published to acclaim in 2019.

Tanya now lives in the Northern Territory with her husband. 

This review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie author challenge

  the Australian Women Writers challenge  and the Non Fiction reader challenge

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: Just One Wish by Rachael Johns

Just One Wish

by

Rachael Johns

Publisher: Harlequin Australia
Publication date: 21st October 2019
Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Women's Fiction
Pages: 496
Format read: Paperback
Source: won

Three women, three secrets, one life-changing journey. Alice has always been a trailblazer as a scientist, activist, and mother. She knew her choices would involve sacrifices, but now, on the eve of her eightieth birthday, she's beginning to wonder if she's sacrificed too much.


Alice's daughter Sappho rebelled against her unconventional upbringing, choosing to marry young and embrace life as a homemaker, but her status as a domestic goddess has recently taken a surprising turn.

Ged has always been the peacemaker between her grandmother and mother. A tenacious journalist she knows what she wants in life and love, yet when everything in her world starts falling apart, she begins to question whether she really knows anyone at all.

At a crossroads in each of their lives, Alice, Sappho and Ged embark on a celebratory trip together, but instead of bringing them closer, the holiday sparks life-changing consequences and lifts the lid on a fifty-year secret.

With a feminist pioneer for a grandmother and a domestic goddess and instagram sensation for a mother Ged is stuck in the middle trying to appease them both.

Each woman has a secret, some more potent than others. Ged has a secret that will unite them as a family but Alice’s secret could tear them apart.

Ged, Alice and Sappho’s stories will have you wondering what you would do if you were in their shoes as each of them face dilemmas relevant to women everywhere.

Just One Wish was an easy, quick read but an easy or light read doesn’t mean it can’t deal with some pertinent issues, especially relevant to women today. The story touches on issues such as single parents, gay parenting, feminism, abortion, DNA testing, co-parenting, women’s rights, euthanasia and adultery. For me personally I think there were too many issues explored in this story.

Just One Wish was an enjoyable read. My main disappointment being the number of errors in the book. Things that should have been picked up during editing.

I have read Rachael John’s rural romance offerings and absolutely loved them so I was a bit disappointed that this book didn’t wow me. I am looking forward to reading Lost Without You, also by Rachael Johns, which I have waiting on my shelf.

My rating 3/5        ⭐⭐⭐

Photo credit: Goodreads

Rachael Johns is an English teacher by trade, a mum 24/7, a chronic arachnophobic, a Diet Coke addict, a podcast junkie and a writer the rest of the time. She rarely sleeps and never irons. A lover of romance and women’s fiction, Rachael loves nothing more than sitting in bed with her laptop and electric blanket and imagining her own stories.
In 2016 The Patterson Girls was named General Fiction Book of the Year at the Australian Book Industry Awards. Rachael has finaled in a number of other of competitions, including the Australian Romance Readers Awards. Jilted won Favourite Australian Contemporary Romance for 2012, The Patterson Girls won the same award for 2015 and she was voted in the Top Ten of Booktopia’s Favourite Australian Author poll in 2013.
Rachael lives in the Perth hills with her hyperactive husband, three mostly gorgeous heroes-in-training, two ginger cats, a cantankerous bird and a very badly behaved dog.

This review is part of the Book Lover Book Review Aussie author challenge

and Australian Women Writers challenge  

 

 

 

 

 

Mailbox Monday & Life This Week - June 1st

Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog.

Life This Week is a meme created by Denyse Whelan Blogs where bloggers share snaps of what is currently happening in their lives.

Happy Monday!

What has been happening over the last two weeks!
Life is slowly getting back to some sort of normal as schools started back full time. Cafes and shops are still limited but restrictions here will be easing soon.

I was excited that we had a good night of rain last week and it was good to see the gardens getting some much needed water but it was short lived and we haven't seen rain since but the tanks are now full.

We are still going on lots of walks and we saw a couple of bush turkeys in the bush near our house. They were having a great time scratching in a huge pile of wood-chip. 

I helped my daughter do an end of lease clean and my muscles hurt the next day. It was a good, you've had a good workout, hurt. She surprised me with flowers the next day.

I've been doing more baking. I made these honey madeleines from Just Desserts by Charlotte Ree. They were simple delicious.

Books received over the last two weeks:

Won:

The Girl She Was by Rebecca Freeborn
Layla was just like any other teenager in the small town of Glasswater Bay: she studied hard, went out with her friends and worked at the local cafe after school. But when her attractive, married boss turned his attention on her, everything changed.

Twenty years later, Layla's living a quiet life in the suburbs with a loving husband and two children. She's finally left the truth of what happened behind. Until she receives a text message: I know what you did.

For years, she’s outrun her past, turning away from her friends and her home town. Now her past is about to catch up.    



From the publisher:

Better Luck Next Time by Kate Hilton
It isn’t easy being related to a feminist icon, especially when she’s celebrating the greatest moment of her storied career.

Just ask the daughters of Lydia Hennessey, who could have it all if only they’d stop self-destructing. Mariana, the eldest, is on the verge of throwing away a distinguished reputation in journalism, along with her marriage. Nina, the middle daughter, has returned from a medical mission overseas as a changed woman but won’t discuss it with anyone. And Beata, the youngest, has a hostile teenaged son who just discovered the existence of a father who didn’t know about him either. Meanwhile, their cousin Zoe is making divorce look like a death match, while her brother, Zack, is grappling with the fallout from his popular television dramedy, which is based far too closely on Lydia herself.

It might be easier to find their paths if they could step out of Lydia’s shadow—but the biggest women’s march in history is underway, and Lydia and her family are at the centre of it.

Over the course of an eventful year, the Hennessey children contend with the big struggles of midlife: aging parents, raging teens, crumbling marriages and bodies, new loves and the choice between playing it safe or taking life-altering risks. And as they inch toward a new definition of happiness, they might even persuade their parents—and themselves—that they’re all grown up.

From  Netgalley: 

My Life for Yours by Vanessa Carnevale
Paige and Nick are happy. They have a beautiful home, a loving family and, most importantly, they would do anything for each other. Now, they are having a baby and it feels like all their dreams are coming true.

But joy turns to despair when they discover that Paige has a rare, life-threatening heart condition and they lose their longed-for child. Heartbroken, the couple must accept the reality that they may not become parents after all.

Just as they begin to come to terms with their loss, Paige unexpectedly falls pregnant again. Paige’s heart is still weak, and to carry the baby to term puts them both at risk. The couple now face an impossible decision: Paige’s life or the life of their unborn child?

If Paige keeps the baby, she could lose her life and destroy the man she loves. If Nick tries to stop her, he may lose them both forever. It’s the most important decision they have ever had to make – and time is running out. 

I would love to hear what you received in the mail lately!