The Facemaker

A Visionary Surgeon's Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I

By: Lindsey Fitzharris

Narrated by: Daniel Gillies

Length: 8 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

Lindsey Fitzharris, the award-winning author of The Butchering Art, presents the compelling, true story of a visionary surgeon who rebuilt the faces of the First World War’s injured heroes, and in the process ushered in the modern era of plastic surgery.

From the moment that the first machine gun rang out over the Western Front, one thing was clear: mankind’s military technology had wildly surpassed its medical capabilities. Shells and mortar bombs flung men around the battlefield like rag dolls. Ammunition containing magnesium fuses ignited when lodged in flesh. Bodies were battered, gouged, hacked, and gassed. The war claimed millions of lives and left millions more wounded and disfigured. In the midst of this brutality, however, there were also those who strove to alleviate the human suffering. The Facemaker tells the extraordinary story of one such individual: the pioneering plastic surgeon Harold Gillies, who dedicated himself to restoring the burned and broken faces of the injured soldiers under his care.

Gillies, a Cambridge-educated New Zealander, became interested in the nascent field of plastic surgery after encountering the human wreckage on the front. Returning to Britain, he established one of the world’s first hospitals dedicated entirely to facial reconstruction. There, Gillies assembled a unique group of practitioners whose task was to restore what had been torn apart, to recreate what had been destroyed. At a time when losing a limb made a soldier a hero, but losing a face made him a monster to a society that was largely intolerant of facial differences, Gillies restored not just the faces of the wounded but also their spirits.

The Facemaker places Gillies’s ingenious surgical innovations alongside the dramatic stories of soldiers whose lives were wrecked and repaired. It also relates the work of the many doctors, nurses, artists, and orderlies who staffed Gillies’s hospital and boldly attempted to balance their obligations to the army, their patients, and science. The result is a vividly absorbing account of how medicine can be an art, and of what courage and imagination can accomplish in the presence of relentless horror.

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Lindsey Fitzharris (P)2022 Macmillan Audio

Sharp glimpse of war and medical possibilities

This is a powerful nonfiction window into the horrors of war and the possibilities of medical advances—how need drives invention and persistence in the face of great odds can deliver lasting results. The soldiers and medical personnel during WWI deserve our thanks and deepest respects.

You know it’s a good story when you find yourself (after a long day of work) thinking “let’s head to the front”

Wow, the reading is fantastic, and as I understand it, is the ancestor of the main subject of the book Dr. Gilles.
Wonderfully written. Can’t wait to “read” more from this author. I feel like I’ve learned about a forgotten hero…also as someone who has had a rhinoplasty, I’m very grateful for Gilles work!

Fascinating

Great overview of the history of the advances in plastic surgery during World War I. Harold Gillies did some amazing things to reconstruct soldier’s faces. I was captivated during the entire book and enjoyed the side stories on the history of blood transfusions and the Spanish Flu. The audio performance was outstanding and the pdf with photos of the featured soldiers really enhanced the telling of this story.

Helps if you have a medical background

It probably helps if you have a medical background when reading this book, but regardless it is a fascinating story well told.

Amazing Story

Even though this is non-fiction, it reads like a story book. It is amazing that these "characters" are real people who have done incredible things!

Engaging beginning to end!

Definitely a "page turner"! A well-researched behind-the-scenes look at the horrors of war and untold history.

An inspiring story

I wish all biographies were written with this much care and attention . The effort that went into getting and respecting primary sources serves as a model and inspiration for my own work.

Really enjoyable read

I thought this was a wonderful read. I cant remember enjoying a book more than this. Not at all too deep, just wonderful from a human interest perspective.

Wow!

What a harrowing tale. The author really brings it to life. An excellent story told beautifully.

Review by Plastic Surgeon

Great story of a pioneer of the surgical specialty of plastic surgery! I learned a lot, particularly regarding the influence of dental pioneers on Gillies.