The Other Dr. Gilmer

Two Men, a Murder, and an Unlikely Fight for Justice

By: Benjamin Gilmer

Narrated by: Benjamin Gilmer

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS’ CHOICE • A “mesmerizing” (The New York Times Book Review) true story about a shocking crime and a mysterious illness that will forever change your notions of how we punish and how we heal—an expansion on one of the most popular This American Life episodes of all time

“A remarkable medical detective story–cum–memoir, grippingly told . . . I was drawn in by every part of it.”—Atul Gawande, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Being Mortal

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Public Library

Fresh out of medical residency, Dr. Benjamin Gilmer joined a rural North Carolina clinic only to find that its previous doctor shared his last name. Dr. Vince Gilmer was loved and respected by the community—right up until he strangled his ailing father and then returned to the clinic for a regular week of work. Vince’s eventual arrest for murder shocked his patients. How could their beloved doctor be capable of such violence? The deeper Benjamin looked into Vince’s case, the more he became obsessed with discovering what pushed a good man toward darkness.

When Benjamin visited Vince in prison, he met a man who appeared to be fighting his own mind, constantly twitching and veering into nonsensical tangents. Sentenced to life in prison, Vince had been branded a cold-blooded killer and a “malingerer”—a person who fakes an illness. But it was obvious to Benjamin that Vince needed help. Alongside This American Life journalist Sarah Koenig, Benjamin resolved to understand what had happened to his predecessor. Time and again, the pair came up against a prison system that cared little about the mental health of its inmates—despite more than a third of them suffering from mental illness.

The Other Dr. Gilmer takes listeners on a riveting and heart-wrenching journey through our shared human fallibility, made worse by a prison system that is failing our most vulnerable citizens. With deep compassion and an even deeper sense of justice, Dr. Benjamin Gilmer delves into the mystery of what could make a caring doctor commit a brutal murder. And in the process, his powerful story asks us to answer a profound question: In a country with the highest incarceration rates in the world, what would it look like if we prioritized healing rather than punishment?

©2021 Benjamin Gilmer (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Mesmerizing . . . a wrenching, maddening, compelling book.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Fans of both true-crime podcasts and medical mysteries are in for a treat. . . . The search for answers sends [Benjamin Gilmer] on a years-long crusade through the legal and prison systems, where medical compassion can be hard to come by.”—The Washington Post

“A remarkable true-crime account . . . The story makes a fascinating real-life mystery, but The Other Dr. Gilmer is more than that. Benjamin Gilmer argues that, as asylums have closed and mental health centers have seen budgets slashed, the criminal justice system has become a holding pen for many of the nation’s mentally ill. . . . [He] calls for humane reforms to ease the system and perhaps to prevent crimes in the first place.”—Wilmington Star-News

Incredible story, punctuated with beautiful storytelling

Everything about this book was superb in my eyes. Not only is the story incredibly compelling, but the empathy and curiosity of the narrator is tangibly felt when it told in his own voice. I’ve recommended this book to many already and will continue to, I was absolutely hooked from start to finish.

well told

a necessary story that breaks your heart opens your eyes destroys your faith in humanity at the same time reaffirming your faith in humanity.

And extraordinary story of compassion and moral exhortation!

Benjamin Gilmer has devoted his life to an attempt to wrestle justice from a deeply flawed prison industrial complex.

There are profoundly important lessons strewn all through this fine piece of writing - and through a fine piece of living.

incredibly well written & read by the author. was

incredibly well written & read by the author.very happy for the update at the end!

Compelling

A thought provoking and poignant narrative that brought two titular rural docs together.

Where am I on this journey

Just wondering about my own experience and mental health. How is my brain doing after 70 years

I had no idea how impactful this would be

This is an in-depth narrative that fleshes out a story that was first heard in 2013 on NPR's This American Life radio program. I wondered if it would be worth a credit when I had already listened to that program. It was. Well told, wonderfully narrated by the author. This is a memorable story.

Captivating story

I knew the story from This American Life but there was so much more here. An inspirational and painful book. A must read if you are in medicine.

Loved it!

What an incredible story! As an Asheville native, I found this book beyond inspiring and intriguing!

Amazing true story of perseverance

A truly compelling story. As suspenseful as any fiction mystery. It will not disappoint you.