Twelve Patients

Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital

By: Eric Manheimer

Narrated by: Eric Manheimer

Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

In the spirit of Oliver Sacks Awakenings and the TV series House, Dr. Eric Manheimer's Twelve Patients is a memoir from the medical director of Bellevue Hospital that uses the plights of 12 very different patients - from dignitaries at the nearby UN, to supermax prisoners from Riker's Island, to illegal immigrants, and Wall Street tycoons - to illustrate larger societal issues.

Manheimer is not only the medical director of the country's oldest public hospital, but he is also a patient. As the audiobook unfolds, he is diagnosed with cancer and is forced to wrestle with the end of his own life - even as he struggles to save the lives of others.

©2012 Eric Manheimer (P)2012 Hachette

The WORST Narration Possible

Is there anything you would change about this book?

It needs a professional reader.

What was most disappointing about Eric Manheimer’s story?

That what could have been interesting stories were made dull and almost incomprehensible by the author's narration.

Would you be willing to try another one of Eric Manheimer’s performances?

No, never!

Did Twelve Patients inspire you to do anything?

Not listen to it again.

Any additional comments?

Please, Audible (and other audiobook producers), convince authors they are not usually the best person to read their own work.

Brilliant, moving, and real to the core.

Covering many medical and sociatal issues, tugging at your heart-strings.

With the author reading it, there is a true sense of emotion. No difficult medical jargon. I struggled with the many Spanish phrases at the start, as my first language is Afrikaans and second language English anf I love in a country where people do not speak Spanish. But it got less and translated more throughout the book.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys non-fiction, to anyone who like things raw and real to the core.

A little preachy

Good book overall, but I would have liked less preaching and more development of characters. While some cases went into much detail, I found that there could be a lack of cohesiveness, and a lot of jumping between stories without any explanation or buildup.

decent story

I enjoyed the stories after watching New Amsterdam. However, the narrator didn't keep my attention. he was very monotonous.

Narrated in near monotone.

Potentially interesting material delivered in near monotone and reported without the insight or reflective thinking that engages a reader in a meaningful way.

Outstanding

So much more than what I expected. The insights into how the patients in the hospital are affected by the social and political issues are so thought provoking. I love the way he ties together what is happening in the world to what the patients are going through. The stories are so personal and relatable. I found it fascinating and hope it can be used to illustrate the issues and focus on changes that should be made to our current health care system.

Fascinating stories but a little disjointed

The stories are told well and deeply. The authors understanding and knowledge of the human side of medicine is refreshing. At times I felt that the story jumped back and forward in time too much but overall a compelling read.

Not what I was expecting

A little off of the expected topic and a little hard to follow at times.

Disappointed

What did you like best about Twelve Patients? What did you like least?

I can't say I really liked anything "best" about it. I usually enjoy medical nonfiction, but found the stories kind of boring. I don't know if this had to do with the narrator. No inflection or differentiation between characters by voice. I also found it irritating how political views were inserted in the narration. I guess he had every right to do so because it is a nonfiction account of cases he was a part of, but for some reason it seemed to take away from the actual story that was being told.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Blah.

Did Twelve Patients inspire you to do anything?

No.

Should have used professional narrator

I appreciate the story very much but found the narration too bland, with the exception of the chapter about the author’s own illness. I would suggest re-issuing the audiobook with a new narrator. I would suggest George Guidall.