This was a Goodreads recommendation for me based on my preference for good historical novels that involves a journey filled with experiences and adventure and how these experiences affects the traveler. Set in the 11th Century it chronicles the life of young Rob Cole. Orphaned at nine years of age, he is apprentice to a travelling barber-surgeon (a snake-oil salesman). Rob is with the barber for years, travelling the width and breadth of England, peddling his cure-all and learning all he can of medicine, crude though it seems. Rob yearns for knowledge and hears of a medical school in Persia, which is a perilous journey from England that takes him two years. To gain entrance he must masquerade as a Jew and immerse himself in their culture. This is a fabulous read, a truly epic adventure, rich with history from England to Constantinople and beyond, full of wonderful characters that light every page. As you can see I enjoyed it, hardly able to put it down, If you enjoyed “Pillars of the Earth” by Ken Follett you will enjoy this as well. A definite must read!

This is a novel of adventure and romance, intrigue and betrayal, culture and religion, politics. Gordon weaves an interesting story, and all his characters are well-developed and believable but flawed, still very likable. His descriptions of life in the Middle Ages are vivid.

Noah Gorgon's ability to transport you back into the dark ages is a result of talent and insightful research.
This is a story of a young man born in London during the reign of King Knute and his transformation throughout his life to become Hakim, the Persian word for Physician. For a Christian, to become a physician was deemed sacrilegious by the all powerful church, and the Islamic world would kill infidels on sight. The protagonist, Rob J Cole, had to become something altogether different than a Christian or a Muslim in order to accomplish the metamorphosis from a dark age European to an enlightened scientist.
The adventures lived and the growth undergone was inspiring for me and almost led me to become a physician. I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of old England and Ancient Persia, their cultures, the harshness and impossibly of life, and historical allusions. This book is a great escape, to a world far, far from here.

Dieses Buch fing sehr spannend an und wurde nie langweilig. Leider hat es mich nicht so sehr begeistert, wie ich gedacht hätte. Das lag zum Teil an Rob. Dieser hat es nie geschafft, mich komplett für sich einzunehmen, daher fieberte man jetzt nicht unbedingt richtig mit. Das Buch wird sehr langsam geschildert, damit meine ich, dass nicht viel Zeit übersprungen wird. Am Ende hatte man dann leider das Gefühl, dass dem Autor eingefallen ist, dass das Buch ja irgendwann enden soll. Und dann fing er an, mit extremen Zeitraffern zu arbeiten, um dann eine Szene wieder sehr sehr ausführlich zu schildern und dann wieder in den Zeitraffer zu gehen, mit dem die Geschichte endet. Das fühlte sich für mich beim Lesen sehr komisch an.

Review of the audiobook narrated by Richard Higgins.

The Physician does what all great historical fiction accomplishes, which is bring you wholly to the place and time of the story. Not only that, but the cultural journey that Noah Gordon embarks on is the most fascinating of any book that I've read before. The way that Gordon explores each culture through the lens of a 11th century traveler - especially the Jewish and Muslim cultures, which I wasn't familiar with - kept me completely captivated from start to finish. That was important because nearly all of the secondary characters never grabbed me, and I typically don't enjoy books where I don't love the characters.

Along the way Gordon gives us an insightful view into how early medieval preconceptions and religious beliefs contributed to the lack of advancement in medicine during that time. Somehow Gordon manages to describe people, places, cultures and events in exquisite and vivid detail, yet he rarely dwells upon things which would drag down the plot. It's a long book that never feels long due to how well written it is. Highly recommended.

Richard Higgins provides a somewhat inconsistent narration. He's great with pronunciations, accents and I though he did well giving each character a distinct voice. On the other hand he has a flat delivery which doesn't always express the emotions of a scene well. Despite my reservations, in the end he didn't end up taking away from my overall enjoyment of the book - which I loved and I expect will be in my top 5 at the end of the year.

Final verdict: 5 star story, 4 star narration, 5 stars overall

A boy born in London about the year 1000 becomes orphaned at 9 and is apprenticed to a barber-surgeon/traveling entertainer. The boy learns to juggle and play his part, but he wants to learn how to heal people. As an adult his quest takes him across to Persia to the greatest medical university of the time and back again.

Overall, it was a terrific medieval adventure. I did feel it stagnated in the middle, but towards the end it got back on track.

De lo único que me arrepiento al terminar este libro es de no haberlo leído antes.

Es una obra magnífica que todos deberíamos leer. Se va directo a mis favoritos.

DNF page 70 of 618.

I was sick of juggling balls.



Where are the guts? The blood? The everything?

I loved the movie, though.

But they have nothing to do with each other.

Apenas incrível! Um livro cheio de questões culturais e que me deixou apenas apaixonada.

Le voy a dar un 4,5 a esta novela que si eres amante de la ficción histórica, no puedes dejar de leer. Noah Gordon nos trae una historia plagada de intriga, de amor y de Drama. Con una prosa genial, el autor nos transporta a una Inglaterra a principios del siglo XI en el que acompañamos a Rob un niño inglés, cuyo sueño es ser médico. Como toda novela histórica, en la que se suele cumplir el mismo patrón, el cual es crecer junto al personaje principal Noah Gordon nos hace experimentar el crecimiento de este personaje a través de los años y con el viajamos por medio mundo, para intentar conseguir su objetivo: ser un médico.

En definitiva, el médico, es una grandísima novela que te entretendrás de la primera a la última página.

The Physician is the first book of the excellent trilogy (Cole Family) of Noah Gordon I read. A book that I highly recommended if you like such novels "The Pillars of the Earth" in which generations of different eras are mixed, the history of medicine and exciting travel through exotic places.

Spanish version:
El Médico es el primer libro de la excelente trilogía del escritor Noah Gordon. Un libro muy recomendable si te gustan las novelas tipo "Los Pilares de la Tierra" en el que se mezclan generaciones de épocas diferentes, la historia de la medicina y viajes apasionantes a través de lugares exóticos.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

One of the best historical fiction books set in the 11th century AD, I took my time to savor twenty or so pages everyday for a couple of months. The story begins in London when Rob J Cole is only ten years old, and within 6 years he is caravanning to Persia in the hopes of being trained by the world’s most renowned physician of that era. This book also provides the leading beliefs and practices held by the Church, Judaism and Islam in the same era as well as common medical practices and procedures.

This is the first book of the Cole Trilogy, and I’m looking forward to book two, the Shaman, which I’ll be starting immediately. Definitely five stars for any historical fiction buffs out there!

The 52 Book Club’s Reading Challenge - 2022
Prompt #45 - A book with illustrated people on the cover