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Body of Work: Meditations on Mortality from the Human Anatomy Lab Audiobook
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(3.03) - 789 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
This is a hauntingly moving memoir of the relationship between a cadaver named Eve and the first-year medical student who cuts her open.
Christine Montross was a nervous first-year medical student, standing outside the anatomy lab on her first day of class, preparing herself for what was to come. Entering a room with stainless-steel tables topped by corpses in body bags is shocking no matter how long you've prepared yourself, but a strange thing happened when Montross met her cadaver. Instead of being disgusted by her, she was utterly intrigued—intrigued by the person the woman once was, humbled by the sacrifice she had made in donating her body to science, and fascinated by the strange, unsettling beauty of the human form. They called her Eve. This is the story of Montross and Eve—the student and the subject—and the surprising relationship that grew between them.
Body of Work is a mesmerizing, rarely seen glimpse into the day-to-day life of a medical student—yet one that follows naturally in the footsteps of recent highly successful literary renderings of the mysteries of medicine, such as Atul Gawande's Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science. Christine Montross was a poet long before she became a doctor, and she brings an uncommon perspective to the emotional difficulty of the first year of medical school—the dispiriting task of remaining clinical and detached while in the anatomy lab, and the struggle with the line you've crossed by violating another's body once you leave it.
Montross was so affected by her experience with Eve that she undertook to learn more about the history of cadavers and the study of anatomy. She visited an autopsy lab in Ireland and the University of Padua in Italy where Vesalius, a forefather of anatomy, once studied. She learned about body snatchers and grave robbers and anatomists who practiced their work on live criminals. Her disturbing, often entertaining anecdotes enrich this exquisitely crafted memoir, endowing an eerie beauty to the world of a doctor-in-training. Body of Work is an unforgettable examination of the mysteries of the human body and a remarkable look at our relationship with both the living and the dead.
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"Anatomy class; all it has to teach the first year medical student goes beyond the intricacies of the human body. The author shares her experience in a frank way. The history, social morays of the handling and use of cadavers as a tool to teach future doctors is very interesting and eye-opening."
— Pat (5 out of 5 stars)
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“[Montross’] thoughtful meditations on balancing clinical detachment and emotional engagement will easily find a spot on the shortlist of great med school literature.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
[Raudman's] tone, like Montross's writing, is often irreverent and dryly funny, without ever being disrespectful.
— AudioFile -
“How lucky we are that a poet decided to become a physician. Although all physicians share a personal history of countless hours in the human anatomy lab, only a rare few, I suspect, would be able to so deftly illuminate this transforming and peculiar experience. Montross is a master of detail, so much so that I was shocked to find myself hovering over my own cadaver in medical school again, holding a scalpel as if for the first time.”
— Katrina Firlik, MD, Neurosurgeon and author of Another Day in the Frontal Lobe -
“The physician, like the sculptor, approaches the human body with reverence and admiration. Carried a little further, it becomes worship. In Body of Work, an unflinching memoirist conveys the process, both emotional and intellectual, by which human anatomy is mastered by the doctor-to-be. It should be read by anyone with aspirations for a life in medicine.”
— Richard Selzer, author of Mortal Lessons
Body of Work Listener Reviews
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" A beautiful account of what a med student experiences in the anatomy lab. Given that I work at a medical school, I found it especially interesting. "
— Amy, 2/18/2014 -
" I read this as research for something I'm writing, but it is amazing and beautiful and striking. It also has some wonderfully gruesome history in it. "
— andra, 1/30/2014 -
" i originally gave this book four stars because i know i liked it, however i then thought about it and realized that i finished it less than a month ago and i already cannot summon it. so i thought if i can't remember it, how much could i have really liked it? "
— Dana, 1/22/2014 -
" It's certainly an interesting concept for a book--observe the process of first-year anatomy lab at a medical school and watch the fur fly. There are a lot of good details here from Montross on both what the process means in historical terms as well as how it affects those who do it. However, Montross' prose when it comes to her self-observation is too simplistic to carry this book much beyond average. She writes in the tone of an emotional fourteen year-old on an online journal complaining about how someone has wronged her--the descriptions are too emotionally-loaded, too extravagant, too...much to do anything other than get in the way. But if you move quickly through these parts, there's a lot of good to see here as well. Mildly recommended. "
— Darin, 1/12/2014 -
" I thoroughly enjoyed this book--but then again, I was majoring in nursing when I read it. Tucked between the beautiful and chilling descriptions of her first cadaver is the vivid history of anatomy and physiology. The final chapters describe tales from her residency. Overall, and awesome book! "
— Allison, 1/7/2014 -
" An interesting, well-written book about surviving anatomy lab in medical school. This book isn't for everyone - there are some gruesome sections in this book. The author handles these sections respectfully and isn't trying to be gruesome, but it is gruesome. "
— Cerealflakes, 1/3/2014 -
" This started out kind of lukewarm and I was pretty disappointed, but then it picked up a lot and started talking about actually interesting ethical questions. I probably wouldn't have found it so interesting, though, if I wasn't about to start my first year of medical school. "
— L., 12/26/2013 -
" Almost made me want to be a doctor. Almost. "
— Natalie, 12/4/2013 -
" Great read. It had a lot of medical jargon which I'm not familiar with but it had a lot of great information in it. It had great historical references to autopsies in the past, grave robbing and body snatching. "
— Leah, 11/26/2013 -
" beautiful, poetic and profound. highly recommend. "
— Rivka, 10/15/2013 -
" My fascination with human physiology continues. I've only just started this, but it promises to be interesting. "
— Gary, 10/2/2013 -
" beautiful and poetic. "
— Michelle, 7/26/2013 -
" Interesting meditations on mortality, with (my favorite) medical history and random facts interspersed. "
— Julie, 3/19/2013 -
" I read this to gain more info about the dissection aspects, those aspects that made me stop reading and contemplate, it was a good insight for potential med. students. "
— Megan, 1/16/2013 -
" Beautifully written. I picked up this book after reading several reader reviews here and expected to "tolerate" the sections outlining the history of anatomy. I found myself really intrigued by these sections of the book; a welcome surprise. "
— Rebecca, 12/10/2012 -
" This book was amazing. The first time I opened the book I was drawn into it. It is an extremely fast read and is relatively interesting. "
— Kylie, 4/25/2012 -
" Interesting read for all prehealth students on contemplating the history of medicine, the difficulties of dealing with death, and the challenges of facing one's own mortality. "
— Emil, 9/13/2011 -
" I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book that much. All doctors must dissect a human body...this one wrote a book about it. She also throws in a few history lessons. "
— Tosh, 8/21/2011 -
" It was a very good, informative read, if not a little heavy on the gory details.... ;) "
— Allison, 6/29/2011 -
" She had a fascinating and very poetic way of describing her experiences in the anatomy/dissection lab. Her reflections of her personal experiences combined with a historical context made the book an oddly uplifting and even spiritual read. "
— Reid, 6/9/2011 -
" beautiful, poetic and profound. highly recommend. "
— Rivka, 5/21/2011 -
" Interesting read for all prehealth students on contemplating the history of medicine, the difficulties of dealing with death, and the challenges of facing one's own mortality. "
— Emil, 4/23/2011 -
" memoir if sorts. Medical student and her journey through anatomy lab dissecting a human body and comparing the skills needed to detach from the task and being a doctor. Gross and intriguing. Liked it. "
— Samantha, 4/21/2011 -
" Beautifully written, but I have to say, if there was ever a small chance of me going to medical school, this book dispelled any remnants of thoughts on the matter. *shudders* "
— Kristina, 2/3/2011 -
" Very interesting insight into the beginning process of becoming a Dr. Makes you wonder why anyone would want to do it! Also some fascinating musings on life and death. "
— Julie, 12/8/2010 -
" most takes place in the anatomy lab as one doctor goes through her medical practicals.<br/>not for the squeamish, very graphic and interesting. "
— Una, 11/15/2010 -
" i originally gave this book four stars because i know i liked it, however i then thought about it and realized that i finished it less than a month ago and i already cannot summon it. so i thought if i can't remember it, how much could i have really liked it? "
— Dana, 6/4/2010
About Christine Montross
Dr. Christine Montross is a resident in psychiatry at Brown University. She received her masters of fine arts in poetry from the University of Michigan and has had several poems published in literary journals. While compiling Body of Work, she traveled to anatomical theaters; sought out holy relics; and dissected three arms, a leg, and an entire human body.
About Renée Raudman
Renée Raudman is an actor and Earphones Award–winning audiobook narrator. She has performed on film, television, radio, and on stage and can also be heard in several video games and hundreds of television and radio voice-overs.