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The doctor will not see you now
By Jane Poulson. 2002
Autobiography of Dr. Jane Poulson, the first blind person in Canada to become a practising doctor. Poulson suffered from diabetes…
and because of the disease, lost her sight and then experienced severe heart problems. Nonetheless she was an extremely accomplished doctor, published widely in leading medical journals, and showed great courage and endurance to all who knew her. She wrote this book during the last two years of her life. 2002.The heretic in Darwin's court: the life of Alfred Russel Wallace
By Ross A Slotten. 2004
Physician traces the life of nineteenth-century British naturalist and explorer Alfred Wallace (1823-1913), a colleague of Charles Darwin. Examines Wallace's…
lower-class background, self-education, and socialist views. Discusses his acceptance of spiritualism, environmentalism, and other ideologies scientists typically avoided. Also covers his research travels into dangerous tropical jungles. 2004.The boy in the moon: a father's search for his disabled son
By Ian Brown. 2009
Walker Brown was born with a genetic mutation so rare that perhaps 300 people around the world also live with…
it. Walker turned twelve in 2008, but he weighs only 54 pounds, is still in diapers, can't speak and needs to wear special cuffs on his arms so that he can't continually hit himself. Expanded from Brown's Globe and Mail series about Walker, he sets out to discover his son. Some strong language. Canada Reads 2012. 2009.Terry Fox: a story of hope
By Maxine Trottier. 2005
Terry Fox was a typical Canadian kid who liked to play basketball and soccer, but whose 'ordinary' life was changed…
suddenly at age 18 when his leg was amputated because of cancer. This biography covers the life of Terry Fox and his reasons for running across Canada. Traces his progress from the run's beginning on April 12, 1980 in St. John's until its premature conclusion in Thunder Bay on September 1, 1980. Grades 2-4. 2005.Rex: a mother, her autistic child, and the music that transformed their lives
By Cathleen Lewis. 2008
How can an 11-year old boy hear a Mozart fantasy for the first time and play it back perfectly, but…
struggle to navigate the familiar surroundings of his own home? Lewis shares the mystery of her son Rex, blind and autistic, and the highs, lows, hopes, dreams, joy, sorrows, and faith she has journeyed through with him. 2008.Relative stranger: a life after death
By Mary Loudon. 2006
The author's quest to find her sister Catherine, a schizophrenic, in Catherine's home, in her last hospital room, her paintings,…
her letters, her clothes. But in facing the truths about Catherine's life and death, she asks hard questions about sanity, family responsibility, love, and about what it means to say that a life is - or is not - worth living. 2006.Reluctant genius: the passionate life and inventive mind of Alexander Graham Bell
By Charlotte Gray. 2006
Biography of Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), inventor of the telephone and champion of the deaf. Discusses his temperament; creativity; marriage…
to Mabel Hubbard, who was deaf; family life; and friendship with Helen Keller. Covers his many inventions, years living in Washington, D.C., and association with the National Geographic Society. 2006.Rebuilt: how becoming part computer made me more human
By Michael Chorost. 2005
Science writer recounts his decision to get a cochlear implant, or a computer surgically imbedded in the skull, to artificially…
restore hearing after he became totally deaf in 2001. Describes his physical and mental changes and reflects on the implications of technological advances on the deaf community and on humanity. 2005.Norman Bethune (Extraordinary Canadians)
By Adrienne Clarkson. 2011
Reviled as a communist by some, revered as a humanitarian by others, Norman Bethune was a surgeon, medical innovator, and…
political activist who deployed his skills on the battlefields of Spain and China in the 1930s. His prodigious talents included inventing surgical instruments, mobile blood-transfusion units, teaching, and advocating for social justice at home and abroad. Includes violence. 2011.Labrador doctor: my life with the Grenfell Mission
By W. A Paddon. 2002
Driving dog teams through the icy heart of a northern winter, bracing against the flimsy bulkhead of a frail ship…
battered by storms, removing an appendix on a heaving vessel while bluebottle flies buzz overhead - hard training for a future Lieutenant-Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador. Tony Paddon here recounts his life, from his Labrador childhood to his time in the RCN during World War II, to his service as a Grenfell doctor operating out of St. Anthony, Newfoundland and North West River, Labrador. 1989.Professor's portrait of German astronomer Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), considered "the father of celestial mechanics." Examines Kepler's tribulations and triumphs as…
a protestant scientist during the Thirty Years' War, the Reformation, and the Counter-Reformation. Describes events such as his mother's witchcraft trial. Includes Kepler's letters and journal entries. 2004.Jim: a life with AIDS
By June Callwood. 1988
In 1984, Jim St. James was diagnosed with AIDS. Since then, his life has been a physical, spiritual and emotional…
roller coaster. As Canada's longest-surviving AIDS patient, Jim's story is one of strength and encouragement. 1988.Inventors: profiles in Canadian genius
By Thomas Carpenter. 1990
Profiles of nine Canadian inventors who have had a profound impact on the fields of communication, travel and industry. Some…
of the inventions include hydroelectric power stations, synthetic fertilizers and the snowmobile. Senior High and adult readers. 1990.David Suzuki: the autobiography
By David T Suzuki. 2006
The second volume of Suzuki's autobiography, as the now 70-year-old environmentalist reflects on his entire life - and on his…
hopes for the future. Begins with his life-changing encounters with racism while interned during World War II, and continues through his troubled teenage years and later successes as a scientist and host of CBC's The Nature of Things. Describes his growing consciousness of the natural world and humankind's precarious place in it; his travels throughout the world; and his meetings with international leaders. Some descriptions of sex and some strong language. 2006.An imperfect offering: humanitarian action for the 21st century
By James Orbinski. 2008
In 1988, James Orbinski, then a young medical student, embarked on a research trip to Rwanda to investigate pediatric AIDS.…
Shaken by the mostly preventable pain and suffering he had seen, he later helped establish the Canadian chapter of Médecins Sans Frontières. He returned to Rwanda in 1994 during its civil war, and confronted by indescribable cruelty, he struggled to regain his footing as a doctor, a humanitarian and a man. 2008.A brief history of anxiety (yours & mine)
By Patricia Pearson. 2008
Pearson was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder at 23. She traces the roots of her anxiety to her youth, when…
her diplomat father was posted to India during a war, and genetically to a grandmother whose famous biting wit was likely a manifestation of anxiety and depression. She believes that it is anxiety, not fear, that characterizes our age, and offers some answers as to why, and some solutions on dealing with it based on her own personal battles. Some strong language. 2008.28: stories of AIDS in Africa
By Stephanie Nolen. 2007
Stories of Africans and AIDS, including Andualam Ayalew, a commando who was kicked out of the army after testing positive…
for HIV, but came back to teach his former comrades about using condoms, and Agnes Munyiva, a prostitute for 30 years, who does not have HIV. Her natural immunity has brought doctors and researchers from all over the world to study her. 28 stories symbolize the estimated 28 million HIV-infected people in Africa. Some descriptions of sex. Some descriptions of violence. Some strong language. 2007.Tuesdays with Morrie: an old man, a young man, and life's greatest lesson
By Mitch Albom. 1997
Some twenty years after college, Mitch Albom rekindles his relationship with a former professor who is terminally ill. His weekly…
visits with his dying mentor become a colloquium on the meaning of life, and Albom gains insight into "love, work, community, family, aging, forgiveness, and, finally, death." Bestseller. 1997.Endurance: a year in space, a lifetime of discovery
By Scott Kelly. 2017
The veteran of four space flights and the American record holder for consecutive days spent in space, Kelly has experienced…
things very few have. Now, he takes us inside a sphere utterly inimical to human life. He describes navigating the extreme challenge of long-term spaceflight, both existential and banal: the devastating effects on the body; the isolation from everyone he loves and the comforts of Earth; the pressures of constant close cohabitation; the catastrophic risks of depressurization or colliding with space junk, and the still more haunting threat of being unable to help should tragedy strike at home--an agonizing situation Kelly faced when, on another mission, his twin brother's wife, Gabrielle Giffords, was shot while he still had two months in space. Kelly's humanity, compassion, humor, and passion resonate throughout, as he recalls his childhood and the youthful inspiration that sparked his astounding career, and as he makes clear his belief that Mars will be the next, ultimately challenging step in American spaceflight. Bestseller. 2017.Knife edge: life as a special forces surgeon
By Richard N Villar. 1997
Though a surgeon at heart, Villar takes and passes SAS selection, learning to infiltrate secret establishments, to stay calm under…
hostile interrogation and above all to survive. In this book the author recounts his experiences in the troubled spots of the world.