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Julien Offray de la Mettrie, best known as the author of L’Homme machine, appears as a minor character in most accounts of the Enlightenment. But in this intellectual biography by Kathleen Wellman, La Mettrie—physician-philosophe—emerges as a central figure whose medical approach to philosophical and moral issues had a profound influence on the period and its legacy.
Wellman’s study presents La Mettrie as an advocate of progressive medical theory and practice who consistently applied his medical concerns to the reform of philosophy, morals, and society. By examining his training with the Dutch physician Hermann Boerhaave, his satires lampooning the ignorance and venality of the medical profession, and his medical treatises on subjects ranging from vertigo to veneral disease, Wellman illuminates the medical roots of La Mettrie’s philosophy. She shows how medicine encouraged La Mettrie to undertake an impiricist critique of the philosophical tradition and provided the foundation for a medical materialism that both shaped his understanding of the possibilities of moral and social reform and led him to espouse the cause of the philosophers.
Elucidating the medical view of nature, human beings, and society that the Enlightenment and La Mettrie in particular bequethed to the modern world, La Mettrie makes an important contribution to our understanding of both that period and our own.

In the midst of a fast-paced profession, it is increasingly a challenge to pause and reflect on where a person’s life is heading. All can feel overwhelming. In these moments, when nothing seems stable, it can be instructive to pause and study individuals from previous generations who lived fully and left a lasting legacy. To find valuable lessons and perspective on the present, author Dr. Phillip Diller has often turned to man, citizen, writer, educator, and physician, Dr. Daniel Drake, who lived from 1785-1852.
 

Designed to appeal to early and mid-career professionals, particularly those in the medical field, Drake and Diller offer readers a way to enhance life with small actions that can leave a legacy in any community—professional or personal. Documented previously as a man whose life was remarkable for the breadth and depth of his professional accomplishments, Drake’s countless contributions are showcased here to demonstrate the impact he truly had in his time and for generations to come. Engaging with Drake and Diller’s thoughtful and principled voices provides a lasting perspective for those trying to find their purpose in the present.  


 

Jerry’s zest for life and breadth of experiences, combined with an idiosyncratic sense of humor, have yielded this collection of entertaining, insightful, and heartwarming essays. Life Is What Happens While You Make Other Plans is a must-read for anyone interested in getting a glimpse of life through the spectacles of a modern-day Renaissance man. Dr. Jerry Kolins—pathologist, hospital administrator, scuba diver, fine wine collector, Wolverine football fanatic, and bow tie aficionado—has now shown what he can do as a writer. Life Is What Happens While You Make Other Plans is a collection of essays that are poignant, funny, and sincere. Jerry couldn’t make it physically through one day of football practice, but his passion and obsession with Michigan football are truly sincere to those of us who played the game. Jerry’s vibrant personality comes across through his engaging prose, the relatively concise themed segments, and his ability and willingness to tackle a wide range of topics, even extremely painful and personal ones, head-on. That’s rather brave of him, and it adds significantly to the authenticity of his voice.

Physicians retire at all ages—older doctors forsake medical practice when tired of it or when forced to do so by age or illness; younger practitioners leave because of burnout, disillusionment with the medical system, or a desire to engage in new activities. But research and literature about physician retirement is scanty. Given the limited resources available, many physicians who want to retire from medicine remain mired in indecision, wondering how their life might be different if they left medicine. Sharon Romm has written the definitive guide to help health care professionals of all ages prepare for the joys and challenges ahead.