5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Repetitive and not all that compelling, February 28, 2007
I wanted to like this book, I really did. I love reading about the art and career of medicine, and this book sounded right up my alley!
But basically all that happened in this book is the author goes for some tests at the Mayo clinic and is surprised to find that his drinking, smoking, and high stress haven't put him in the greatest condition to care for his second, younger family (his children with his second wife are only 5 and 6). There is a bit of interesting information in here about the Mayo clinic, some history of medicine, and general info about certain common diseases and maladies, but nothing so interesting that it made me feel excited about continuing.
Later in the book, he gets on a rant about stem-cell research and how he had hoped that it could help his diabetic daughter live a longer life, but how deeply disappointing it is that the Bush administration won't allow federal funding for this kind of research. I agree with him passionately on this topic, but even my sympathies were tried by the amount of times he returned to that same rant. I think a good editor could have really helped in that regard.
So this book gets a disappointed 3 stars from me. I got some information out of it, but I didn't get any earth-shattering insights from it, and I didn't really find his personal musings about his health all that interesting.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hilarious and thought-provoking sequel to Positively Fifth Street, February 4, 2006
I don't think I'm spoiling anything by revealing Jenny gets her revenge for the lap dance and the World Series of Poker winnings did not cause fundamental changes in the McManus household (most of the book appears to have been written before he discovered how successful PFS would be). In this installment, McManus is sent to cover his super-physical at the Mayo Clinic (by Harper's) and stem cell research politics in Washington (by Esquire); in place of the WSOP and Binion Murder Trial of PSF. This book, like the last, is illuminated with his massive common sense, exceeded only by his human ability to ignore that sense.
At first, the title and subtitle refer to his Mayo examination, but the book rapidly transcends that to mean both the uncomfortable awareness of our bodies as physical entities, meat puppets, and the state of medical care as a checkup on the social health of America. Despite the always-amusing tone, McManus pulls no punches, discussing the suicide of his son, the horrors of juvenile diabetes in one daughter and the dramatic eye injury of another; along with many unpleasant deaths of friends and strangers. He unflinchingly details invasive procedures and unpopular body fluids. But even when terrified, enraged, grossed out or lecturing, the author remains unshakably, deeply, humbly, human.
PFS certainly did not create the poker boom, but it came along at the inflection point and instantly became the thinking man's guide to the modern tournament poker world. Five years later as the steepening of the mortality curve becomes noticeable to boomers, good cholesterol and blood pressure readings become better than royal flushes. Questions about the economics and ethics of health care are rising to the top of the political agenda.
The book is astonishingly well-written, filled with poetic riffs on decidedly difficult topics for poetry. It is painfully honest, without being at all painful to read. Some of the lines will resonate in your head for days, from the sheer beauty of the language; but they never get in the way of the storytelling.
This is a great book, as fun to read as Positively Fifth Street, but on a topic that will do you more good, or, if not, show you how to be happy while ignoring your own good.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Mildly interesting, August 26, 2006
I imagine many readers in the author's age range who pick up this book hoping for new insights into modern health care or tips on obtaining the best physical for their dollars will find nothing new. The author is fortunate to have an employer willing to stand the cost of the workup at Mayo. Although he's happy with the outcome, he'd probably have been able to produce a more interesting piece if he'd had more wrong with him. He turned out to be a fairly typical middle-aged physical specimen who needed to lose a few pounds and get his cholesterol and triglycerides down. And it cost someone about 8,000 dollars to have Mayo's verify this. Unfortunately, most of us can't afford this sort of comprehensive exam (the fact that it's referred to as the "executive" exam suggests the target market), and it's way beyond the level of checkup Medicare will spring for as the annual physical it permits each recipient.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
