How to Treat People

How to Treat People Synopsis

*A Sunday Times best memoir of 2019*

'This beguiling memoir traces Case's career as a nurse . . . her empathy and compassion are everywhere' Sunday Times
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The hand of a stranger offered in solace. A flower placed on a dead body as a mark of respect. A gentle word in response to fear and anger. It is these moments of empathy, in the extremis of human experience, which define us as people.

Nobody knows this better than a nurse and Molly Case has witnessed countless such moments. In How to Treat People, she documents these extraordinary points, when two people truly connect. In rich, lyrical prose, she introduces us to patients with whom we share the pain, but also the experience of illness when life is at its most vivid. And when her father is admitted to the high dependency unit on which she works, Molly confronts care in a whole new way, when two worlds - the professional and the personal - suddenly collide.

Weaving together medical history, art, memoir and science, How to Treat People beautifully illustrates the intricacies of the human condition and the oscillating rhythms of life and death. Most of all, it is a heart-stopping reminder that we can all find meaning in being part, even for a moment, of the lives of others.
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'Fascinating' Jo Brand

'Beautifully written' Stephen Westaby

'Outstanding. Case's power of observation can slay you' Melanie Reid, The Times

'It will buoy your faith in humanity' Stylist

'Beguiling' Alice O'Keeffe, Guardian