This book was reported and written in the mid-'80s, and while the human elements -- the doctors and patients -- continue to be authentic, it's unlikely family medicine has quite the stigma today that it did then. Still, I gather from talking to medical professionals that it can be difficult to convince medical students and residents to seriously consider a career in family medicine. And that's at the world-famous medical center in the city where I live. In any event, as always with McPhee, "Heirs of General Practice" is well written, with subtle humor and quiet empathy. It is well worth the read, for prospective doctors and writers alike.

Brilliant, as usual. Every physician, hell every patient should read this gem. Beautifully crafted portraits of several family practice docs, mostly in rural Maine, which McPhee uses to critique the emergence of specialization and the counter reaction to it.

The last paragraph is genius.

What can I say about John McPhee that I haven't already said in previous reviews. He can take any subject and make it interesting. It matters not if your particular interest lies elsewhere. All of a sudden the book turns into a page turner, you can't wait to get back to it book and you are sorry when it's finished. Just pick up one of McPhee's books and see for yourself.

I didn’t check when this book was published. The edition I bought made me think maybe it was early McPhee, but, no, far from it. I’m not sure how McPhee got access to the patient information that makes up this book—maybe a benefit of writing about doctors at the fringes—but the writing style felt more rote here than other McPhee. He weaves a few threads, but it’s not the rushing waters of the McPhee I love most.

Delightful quick read!

It’s well written like all of his books, however, I just didn’t find it as compelling or deeply researched as others.

It's McPhee so it's excellent but it's from the 80s so it's dated. Still brings the world of rural doctors to life.

An incredible book about Family Practice Physicians and their role in American health care, as well as the need for more family practice doctors who can provide the much-needed service of primary care. This service would make emergency medicine much less costly and would decrease the cost of health care in this country exponentially as well as increase the health and well-being of American citizens. But it's not an easy job being a family practice physician.

This book was interesting to read as a rural family medicine physician who “does it all”, only in a different state. There were only a couple of medical things that were inaccurate.

An excellent portrait of the heart of family medicine. The fine details of the patients and doctors alike in a case report style are written with such compassion I almost thought the author to be a family physician himself. This book should be required reading for all medical students and for anyone who has ever been a patient. Definitely a book I will be recommending to all my friends!

A former student sent me this book after her first year in medical studies and said "finally someone who tells it like it is". Definitely NOT about urban Medibusiness or the world of HMOS and doctors too busy to doctor, instead McPhee focuses on the lives and work of young doctors in rural Maine, bringing us their story and that of their patients with compassion and without either the cloying sentimentality or the muck-raking zeal that sometimes clogs this topic. A quick read & well worth it.

Very interesting read! A bit historic by now, of course, but nonetheless interesting.