Trust Me, I'm a Junior Doctor - Max Pemberton

If you read the back of this book, it gives the impression it's going to be a barrel of laughs but that doesn't really give the full picture. Don't get me wrong, much of it is very funny but a lot of it is actually quite dark and would be terrifying if you were a medical student (or a patient for that matter). Having said that, it's largely this mixture that makes it such a good book because it shows the reality of life as a junior doctor rather than the life or death ER style glamour. This book charts the day to day life of a junior doctor in the first year after qualification. These guys have to work ridiculously hard and it's a job that inevitably takes over your ...  Read the complete review

While it does contain some screamingly funny anecdotes, this book illuminates the dark and murky world that is inhabited by the junoir doctor; the stress, the frantic timetable, and the pressure of patient expectations. Pemberton recounts the trials of being on the bottom rung of the ladder, in a style which is both engaging and unflinchingly honest. Whether he is recounting eating neat mango chutney from the jar (as he has no time or energy to buy 'real' food), withstanding the wrath of belligerant consulants, or making his 'one big mistake' that spells serious complications for his patient, the reader cannot help but empathise with this overworked member of ...  Read the complete review