This Book Could Save Your Life: The Science of Living Longer Better

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Although many cases of harm result from human and/or system errors, there are many other ways in which harm can be done. Sometimes, bad things simply happen by chance and are unavoidable. In other cases, they are caused by the well-meaning, but ill-informed, use of treatments and tests that do more harm than good. In addition to this, there are tens of thousands of people who, although not being harmed by their care, are not receiving the best possible treatment for their situation. Studies in many countries have shown that the way the same condition is treated can vary dramatically, depending on where the patient lives or on which type of doctor or health practitioner they see. Much remains unknown about how best to prevent or treat many common conditions; however, there is widespread evidence that the information that is already available is often not put to best use. 6 Since her debut in 1989, A.M. Homes has been among the boldest and most original voices of her generation, acclaimed for the psychological accuracy and unnerving emotional intensity of her storytelling. Her keen ability to explore how extraordinary the ordinary can be is at the heart of her touching and funny new novel, her first in six years.

This one made me stop and think. It made me seriously reflect about decisions I have made in my life and the impact my actions had on others, such as my kids. Sure, we sometimes think about these things, BUT this book made me REALLY think about it, wallow in it, really think of the consequences of my actions. To be sad in the moment. To be uncomfortable. To not like myself

Strengths and weaknesses, according to readers’ reviews

This is a great Los Angeles novel and really gives you a beautiful sense of the city - from the Hills, to Malibu, to the highway culture and the natural disasters always looming in LA (mountain lions, floods, earthquakes). kitapta çok komik bir yer var. ünlü senaristle huzurevine gidip bir adamı bir günlüğüne dışarı çıkarıp gezdiriyorlar. richard’ın senaristin babası sandığı adam meğer kendini iyi hisset projesi gibi huzurevinde seçip baktığın biriymiş. böyle bir sistem bile var. inanılmaz. There are some heavy themes here – such as the relationship Richard has with his son Ben. One or two of those scenes are full on drama and very intense. The pent-up pain and resentment of a child who Richard left when he ran off from his ex-wife (Ben's mum), so many years ago. The characters in this book are quirky and utterly hilarious. Set in LA, the people tend to be blunt, if not outright rude. Richard is such a likeable character, despite the fact it’s pretty clear he’s been behaving like a bit of an ass for going on ten years. But the important point is that we can see why. It makes sense, and he’s not behaving that way because he is an asshole, but because he’s afraid, and miserable and he doesn’t know what else to do. In some respects, Richard reminded me of my father. He wants to do well, but he just can’t quite figure out what it is that other people might need. Throughout the book we see Richard come to life, and there is some nice writing in their about the nature of suffering:

This book is a disappointing follow-up to the New Scientist's This Book Could Save Your Life: The Science of Living Longer Better, which is by a different author. Where the first book carefully balanced up the evidence between often-conflicting trials, this book over-simplifies the science.For every time I started to think this book was just lightly entertaining there would come a scene so real and brutal it would hurt a bit. Broken child-parent relationships. Exes whose scent still lingers. Women sobbing in the produce section of a supermarket. This book left me cold. Not indifferent-this-is-failing-to-evoke-a-reaction cold. The good kind of cold. The this-feels-eerily-close-to-reality cold. Despite the intense publicity that usually surrounds such cases of medical negligence, these account for a relatively small proportion of the problems with people’s health care. A much broader problem arises from the care provided by well-meaning professionals in a system that is so fragmented and complicated that it is all too easy for things to go wrong. It is estimated that as many as 30,000 people die in the UK each year as a result of medical errors 3 and that tens of thousands of Australians die or are seriously injured as a result of their healthcare. Seventeen per cent of hospital admissions are associated with an adverse event caused by healthcare management. 4 In the USA, it has been estimated that about 180,000 people die each year partly as a result of their healthcare – the equivalent of three jumbo jet crashes every 2 days. These figures suggest that there is a great deal of room to improve the healthcare that many people receive. For what seemed like a light-hearted romp, turned out to be a forensic examination and rumination of this reader’s own life. You know, Richard’s experiences in this story, would touch on so many people. I would be surprised if any one reader couldn’t find something to draw on here. The ISCD report in Lancet is not an easy read. It would be good subject for a New Scientist article. Perhaps it was at the time?

But the whole question of how the individual should respond to the wider social impact of a drug is a complex one. My consumption of the odd glass of wine with my dinner is quite irrelevant to the wider social problems of domestic violence, drunken driving, and so on, though it is highly relevant to its harm to my health. evet richard novak yahudi ebeveyniyle eh denecek çocukluk geçirmiş, her aile gibi abisiyle sıkıntıları olmuş, severek evlendiği karısından oğlu olmuş, boşanmış, o çocukla ne yapacağını bilemediğinden hiç ilgilenmemiş. Výborná kniha - asi jediná, ktorú doma potrebujete o zdraví. Potom už vám možno staci nejaká s chutnými receptami zo zeleniny.Richard seems to have gone through a seismic shift towards acceptance. Life throws stuff at him, it’s dealt with, without him dealing with it. We could all take a leaf out of his book – who knows, we may make a few new friends, or try a new class, or let life go on around us and not try and control outcomes. See what happens perhaps!!!