The Scalpel, the Sword: The Story of Doctor Norman Bethune [Paperback]

Ted Allen (Author), Sydney Gordon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1952

Compelling narrative of Norman Bethune, revolutionary doctor in Mao's China.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The Scalpel, the Sword celebrates the turbulent career of Dr. Norman Bethune (1890–1939), a brilliant surgeon, campaigner for socialized medicine, and communist. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

Ted Allan (1916-1995) was a playwright, actor, screenwriter, novelist, and biographer. A dedicated Young Communist, Allan's works include This Time a Better Earth (1939) and Love Is a Long Shot (1984), which won the Stephen Leacock Award. The Scalpel, the Sword: The Story of Doctor Norman Bethune (1952) is his best-known work.

Sydney Gordon (1915-1984) was a childhood friend and collaborator of Ted Allan in Montreal.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 346 pages
• Publisher: Monthly Review Press; Revised edition (January 1, 1952)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0853453020
• ISBN-13: 978-0853453024
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,958,330 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #6 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( B ) > Bethune, Norman

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Norm Bethune -- Genius combined with relentless effort., March 26, 2005

By 

Eric Langager (Beijing, China) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Scalpel, the Sword: The Story of Doctor Norman Bethune (Paperback)

There are simple people and there are complicated people. Norm Bethune was definitely of the latter strain. Independent, erratic, gifted, persistent-ever searching for the next direction, or "mission."

His parents were great admirers of D.L. Moody. His father was a pastor at various small towns throughout Ontario, Canada, and his mother was a missionary. Bethune himself didn't seem to have the same interest as his parents in the things of God. But his mother's missionary fervor was obviously a very prominent influence in his life.

His genius as a surgeon first emerged when he contracted tuberculosis and decided that he must prepare to die. He encouraged his wife to divorce him, and he went to a sanitarium. But once he got there, he found the boredom of waiting to die was more tortuous than the illness itself, and he began to research the disease. His fortunes changed drastically when he happened upon a book describing a new procedure which involved removing part of the ribs to collapse an ailing lung. This procedure was new-only about a year old, but Bethune was interested. He was determined to be a beneficiary of this new innovation, and this determination eventually led to his recovery. It was 1927.

After his recovery, he became a thoracic surgeon. But he was frustrated by the numbers of indigent patients who did not get timely treatment because they were too poor. His preoccupation with, an concern for the "underdogs" of the world eventually led him to Spain, where he got involved in the Spanish civil war, working with the forces battling Franco. This experience had a profound effect on his thinking. He joined the Communist Party, and campaigned for support for the resistance forces.

But the heart of this book really begins when Dr. Bethune goes to China. His experiences as a battlefield surgeon make fascinating reading. He was hot-tempered and impatient, but his decision to use his genius as a surgeon to help the guerrilla fighters has given us a story well worth the reading. Edison said that "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." Well, I don't know about the actual percentages, but it is clear that Bethune's life had a good dose of both. He was not only a physician, he was an inventor. He invented 12 different surgical instruments, and published 14 articles outlining his innovations in surgical technique. He was very creative, and a very, very hard worker. And he would not tolerate incompetence. He was vehement almost to the point of violence in his determination to give the best possible treatment to the wounded. The descriptions of battlefield surgery in this book are sometimes painful to read, but very, very compelling.

But I am not a medical person. My primary interest in this book stems from my interest in history. There are several ways that this book is helpful in that area. First of all, the story takes place during the Sino-Japanese war, a time in which Jiang jieshi got a lot of criticism from the Americans because of his refusal to fight the Japanese. Jiang jieshi always said, "The Japanese are a disease of the skin. The Communists are a disease of the heart." Although, he certainly did not want the Japanese to overrun China, he was very hesitant to expend men and resources against what he saw as a major enemy of the Communist armies, which he despised. He obviously felt that if he burned himself out fighting the Japanese, he would make it that much easier for the Communists to take over. That being the case, I have always wondered how much the Communists concentrated on fighting the Japanese themselves. This book answers that question. The wounds Bethune treated were inflicted by the Japanese. And the book gives weight to the idea that perhaps Jiang jie shi's approach backfired, because his refusal to fight the Japanese caused the Chinese people to lose respect for him.

Bethune died of septicemia in November of 1939. In her forward to the book, Soong Ching ling makes much of the charge that his death was due to the fact that the Guomindang refused to let the medicine through. I don't know about that. But it is terribly frustrating to read a story like this, because it is clear that a simple antibiotic could have saved him, as well as many other soldiers he would have been able to save if he had lived.

Finally, Bethune's life had a unique influence on history in a way that I am sure he never could have anticipated. During the days before the opening of China, which began with Nixon's visit in 1972, very few countries had any relationship at all with China. But Canada was a notable exception. Mao and others in China always viewed Canada in a positive light, and much of this was due to the overwhelming tendency to identify Canada with Dr. Norman Bethune, who is a national hero in China.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Norman Bethune - A Life of Service, Compassion & Excitement, November 30, 2001

By 

Ralph D. Siewers (Pittsburgh, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Scalpel and the Sword: The Story of Doctor Norman Bethune (Hardcover)

This is a book that should be on the essential reading list for those planning a career in medicine (surgery). It is truly inspiring, and it provides an interesting history of the early years of thoracic surgery, transfusion medicine, and humanitarian committment. I recommend those who have the opportunity to visit the Bethune Peace Hospital in China, about a two hour drive from Beijing. The Bethune Museum there is wonderful.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A story of Curage, March 4, 2001

By 

Chester Elton (Summit, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Scalpel, the Sword: The Story of Doctor Norman Bethune (Paperback)

I remember this story from my mother reading it to me a s a child and again reading it as a highschool student. I gave me hope that one person can make a difference. That we can do things to help people not for fame and fortune but because people need our help and we have the expertise to help ease their pain and suffering.

Norman bethume was such a man and his story needs to be told again and again. I highly recommend it to anyone who values the efforts of individulas and the love of community.

Chester