danac's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. I originally found it after watching the movie, which is one of my favorites. Normally it takes me FOREVER to read books, especially if the book is as thick as this one, but I read it cover to cover in a span of 3 weeks. I loved the story, the characters, and the general themes.
eule's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Ich sitze in meinem Bett und vergieße Tränen darüber, dass die Reise des Rob Cole aka Jesse ben Benjamin mit der letzen Seite des Buches nun zu Ende geht. Danke, Noah Gordon, dass du dieses Werk 1986 veröffentlicht und mir damit ein neues Lieblingsbuch beschert hast.
Eine wunderschöne und berührende Lebensgeschichte über Leid, Liebe, Verwandlung und Wissensdurst entführt uns in die Welt des 11. Jhd. n. Chr. . Nach dem Tod der Eltern entdecken wir mit Rob das Leben eines Badergehilfen. Als auch sein Lehrmeister stirbt, entschließt sich Rob, seinem Wunsch Medicus zu werden, nachzugehen und in den Orient zu reisen. Seine Reise dauert fast zwei Jahre an und führt ihn durch ganz Europa. In Konstantinopel, nimmt er seine neue Identität des Juden mit dem Namen Jesse ben Benjamin an, um in dem maristan (Krankenhaus) der Stadt Isfahan (heute in Iran) Medizin zu studieren. Neben dem Leben in der damaligen Zeit, den Unterschieden des englischen Lebenstils in Vergleich zum Orient und dem damaligen medizinischen Wissen, durchlebt man ein Abenteuer voller Vorurteile, Krankheit und Barbarik, aber auch Freundschaft, Entwicklung und Kultur.
Gründe, dieses Buch auf der Stelle zu verschlingen:
Eine wunderschöne und berührende Lebensgeschichte über Leid, Liebe, Verwandlung und Wissensdurst entführt uns in die Welt des 11. Jhd. n. Chr. . Nach dem Tod der Eltern entdecken wir mit Rob das Leben eines Badergehilfen. Als auch sein Lehrmeister stirbt, entschließt sich Rob, seinem Wunsch Medicus zu werden, nachzugehen und in den Orient zu reisen. Seine Reise dauert fast zwei Jahre an und führt ihn durch ganz Europa. In Konstantinopel, nimmt er seine neue Identität des Juden mit dem Namen Jesse ben Benjamin an, um in dem maristan (Krankenhaus) der Stadt Isfahan (heute in Iran) Medizin zu studieren. Neben dem Leben in der damaligen Zeit, den Unterschieden des englischen Lebenstils in Vergleich zum Orient und dem damaligen medizinischen Wissen, durchlebt man ein Abenteuer voller Vorurteile, Krankheit und Barbarik, aber auch Freundschaft, Entwicklung und Kultur.
Gründe, dieses Buch auf der Stelle zu verschlingen:
- Die Handlung des Buches ist durchdacht und hat eine Liebe zum Detail.
- Es gibt eine Spannung von Anfang bis Schluss.
- Dieses Buch bietet viel Wissen über die Medizin und beleuchtet das Erlangen von Wissen.
- Verschiedene Kulturen werden dargestellt, miteinander verglichen und kritisch hinterfragt. Vor allem Voruteile werden verurteilt.
- Im hinteren Teil meiner Ausgabe gibt es ein Register mit persischen Bezeichnungen und deren dazugehörigen Erklärungen.
- Die Charakter sind liebenswert aufgrund ihrer Menschlichkeit. Sie haben Schwächen, es gibt Konflikte und Hindernisse.
- Die Weiterentwicklung der Charaktere, vor allem dem des Rob, stehen im Vordergrund. Man begleitet ihn vom Kindesalter bis ins hohe Erwachsenalter. Vor allem ist die Verwandlung von Rob hin zu Jesse und das Erlernen der fremden Kultur sehr beeindruckend und nachvollziehbar beschrieben.
- Nicht nur Beziehungen unter Freunden, sondern auch Liebesbeziehungen sind Inhalt dieses Buches.
- Man lernt dieses Buch und seine Charaktere lieben, während man Schicksalsschläge überwindet.
Gründe, dieses Buch lieber zur Seite zu legen:
- Es gibt viele altertümliche Ansichten und Verhaltensweisen.
- Das Buch strotzt nur so von Vorurteilen.
- Frauen werden massenhaft vergewaltigt.
- Krankheiten und der Tod werden genauestens erläutert.
- Folter und Hinrichtungen sind häufiger Teil dieses Buches.
Dennoch müssen wir die Umstände und den Hintergrund dieses Buches betrachten. Es spielt im 11. Jhd. n. Chr., weshalb viele der verstörenden Inhalte "normal" für dieses Werk sind.
Lest. Dieses. Buch. Ihr werdet es mir danken!
Ps: Lieben Dank an meinen lieben Papa, der mir zuerst den gleichnamigen Film zeigte, woraufhin ich beschloss, das Buch in die Hand zu nehmen <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Grief, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Child death, Violence, Alcohol, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Sexism, Vomit, Racism, Sexual content, Torture, Rape, and War
morepagesplease's review against another edition
4.0
This was an engrossing read. I am so grateful not to have lived in the 11th century. The depiction of ancient medicine was fascinating. I'm glad I picked this one up.
halfcentreader's review against another edition
4.0
The life journey of Rob Cole as first Orphan boy to journeyman barber surgeon to his quest to become a physician by studying in Persia (forbidden to Christians). Along the way he learns not only the art of healing, but what it means to be a Christian, Jew, and Muslim and to do what it takes to thrive as all three. HIs story is about passion and a calling to heal. I enjoyed this long journey and trip back to the early middle ages.
novella42's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This was my favorite book for most of my teenage years. Historical fiction with a hint of fantasy or magical realism, that I think would be a great read for anyone who enjoyed Outlander by Diana Gabaldon or Eternal Life by Dara Horn. I adored Noah Gordon's writing and the main character, leading me to read the book again and again, in spite of the fact that the medical content was always hard for me. It was also familiar, and it came filtered through the perspective of a deeply compassionate person who wanted more than anything to become a doctor to help people. I found that really comforting as a kid with a disability, who wanted to escape and travel the world.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Gore, Islamophobia, Injury/injury detail, Medical trauma, Blood, Alcohol, Violence, Terminal illness, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Death, War, Body horror, Miscarriage, Animal death, Child death, Grief, and Sexual content
so_whatsername's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
bookbelle5_17's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Review of The Physician
By: Noah Gordon
Rob J. Cole as a boy was apprenticed to a barber surgeon and had the gift of knowing when death is coming for someone. As he grows older, he realizes he can help heal people by attending a school for physicians in Persia. Unfortunately, he is a Christian and they don’t allow Christians, so, he decides he must become a Jew to fulfill his dream.
Rob’s journey is amazing as we see him learn how to be physician and grow while discovering this new culture that is very different from his European one. It is an intriguing culture that mixtures their laws and religious belief, but Rob finds it can be limiting to his career as a physician. At the same time, it is enriching for his life path. There are a lot of interesting characters such as Henry Croft, the barber surgeon, Ibn Sina, his mentor, and Mirdin and Karim, the friends that Rob makes in Persia. They are each flawed and complex characters, teaching him the very things that shape Rob. Rob experiences plenty of loss as he is never reunited with his family and loses many people to death making this story heart-wrenching at times. There is also plenty of religious persecution against Jews and Christians. Even Rob before he gets to Persia has a bias against the Jewish religion until he realizes they’re not much different from Christians, just different way of practicing. There were some parts that disturbed me and made me comfortable to read about as I didn’t always understand the mentality, just as Rob didn’t always. It is the story of a good chunk of Rob’s life, so it is slow paced and at times tedious, but it was worth the journey.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Medical content, Body horror, Injury/injury detail, Miscarriage, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child death, Blood, Death, Classism, Hate crime, and Murder
sphinx91's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. It is definitely not an easy read - as much for the length as for the story progression - but I always felt that each sentence was necessary for the story. And medieval theme is far from my favourite.
As you read the book, you understand that author has researched the topics and has put a lot of thought to make this story as realistic as possible. The characters are all very different and it's impossible not to grow fond of at least few of them but at the same time author has not spared them from difficulties as to stay true for the culture they inhabited. If I could, I would give the book 6 stars.
As you read the book, you understand that author has researched the topics and has put a lot of thought to make this story as realistic as possible. The characters are all very different and it's impossible not to grow fond of at least few of them but at the same time author has not spared them from difficulties as to stay true for the culture they inhabited. If I could, I would give the book 6 stars.
sapphirelain's review against another edition
Too graphic and might have super natural elements
annataeko's review against another edition
3.0
I'm happy I reread this once my family and I moved out. Otherwise, it would've been a tear-dropping journey had I read it earlier.
I'm sad I wasn't as invested as the first time. The plot felt unnecessarily long more often than not. For instance, most sex scenes did not contribute much to the story— other than letting the reader know how familiar and close to the human body the main character is getting both professionally and sentimentally. On this same line, female characters are poorly developed, save one or two.
Paralells with my first read's notes in my Spanish copy and my og copy: some underlined quotes coincide, but I was definitely more amused and had lower critical defense levels the first time I read it (Spanish copy).
I'm sad I wasn't as invested as the first time. The plot felt unnecessarily long more often than not. For instance, most sex scenes did not contribute much to the story— other than letting the reader know how familiar and close to the human body the main character is getting both professionally and sentimentally. On this same line, female characters are poorly developed, save one or two.
Paralells with my first read's notes in my Spanish copy and my og copy: some underlined quotes coincide, but I was definitely more amused and had lower critical defense levels the first time I read it (Spanish copy).