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Gift of Pain, The | 
 enlarge | Authors: Paul Brand, Philip Yancey
Publisher: Zondervan
Category: Book
List Price: $12.99
Buy Used: $5.40
You Save: $7.59 (58%)
New (29) Used (23) from $5.40
Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 39808
Media: Paperback
Pages: 352
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.2 x 1
ISBN: 0310221447
Dewey Decimal Number: 610.92
UPC: 025986221447
EAN: 9780310221449
ASIN: 0310221447
Publication Date: September 1, 1997
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: Crease in front cover, some wear to edges, friction wear from shelving, corners bent a little.
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Product Description
Pain is not something that most of us would count as a blessing; however, what it is and why we need it if we're to live life fully is brought to light in this book.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
A Journey not a read! March 15, 2003
Neil Jenman (SYDNEY, NSW AUSTRALIA)
21 out of 22 found this review helpful
If ever there was a book that deserves accolades, this is it. And yet no amount of superlatives could express just how wonderful this book is and what it does to you. It is not so much a book about pain as a book about life. It evokes a sense of gratitude for life that will stay with you for life. How fortunate it makes you feel when you read about both the misfortune and the courage of others. And how the true meaning of life becomes apparent. Without ever telling you what to think, Dr Brand makes you think. He makes you realise that life, with all its challenges, is the great gift. There were times when reading this book that I found myself so moved emotionally that I had to stop reading, almost as if I had to take a deep breath and contemplate what I had just read. And then, slowly, I'd pick the book up again and re-read that moving passage before continuing on. This book is a journey more than a read. It is a journey you will never forget. Please buy it.
Outstanding August 30, 1998
David Graham (Shell, Ecuador)
20 out of 20 found this review helpful
In this combination memoir/medical ruminations - originally published under the title Pain: The Gift Nobody Wants - Dr. Paul Brand and Philip Yancey share Dr. Brand's work as a physician, with reflections from a lifetime of thinking about pain. It is natural for Dr. Brand to explore the subject of pain, for in a career as a surgeon working among leprosy patients, he has seen the devastating effects that come upon people who lack pain - damaged feet, fingers, noses, or eyes, often leading to infection, misery, and death. Part one of this book traces Dr. Brand's path into medicine. Part two explores his career in pain, and part three shares how Dr. Brand has learned to befriend pain, seeing it as a gift, an essential requirement for health. As a Britain who has spent roughly one third of his long life in England, one third in India, and one third in the United States, Dr. Brand's life on three different continents have given him first-hand glimpses of how people view pain. People of any philosophical or religious persuasion will enjoy this ecumenical book, especially since it addresses an issue common to us all. The writing is not overly technical or heavy, and numerous illustrations/stories make this a very readable book. I found the book helpful for understanding the dual nature of pain ("For good and for ill, the human species has among its privileges the preeminence of pain,"), and appreciated the helpful discussion about learning to cope with it.
A remarkable book September 14, 1998
15 out of 16 found this review helpful
It's difficult to summarize this marvelous book in a few words. It's a biography, and a very fascinating one, of one of the world's finest hand surgeons, who came to his line of work because of his concern for patients with leprosy. Dr. Brand is one of the most remarkable men I have ever met, and the story of his life and his work is page-turningly interesting. His life has had very few dull patches. However, the book is also an examination of the place of pain in our lives, and Dr. Brand uses his life story and his quest for understanding the place of pain in the lives of his leprosy patients as a way of getting us to understand the significance of pain and why it must be considered a gift. There are so many wonderful things to say about this book - Dr. Brand is a great storyteller, Phillip Yancey a fine writer and thinker in his own right, whose contributions by Dr. Brand's own estimation amount to far more than just editing Dr. Brand's thoughts - but perhaps I can best summarize the effect of the book by saying that I have given it to 6 people so far, and all have thanked me profusely for doing so. The first person bought ten copies of it herself to give to friends! Yes, it's that good.
This is the most fascinating non-fiction book I ever read. March 25, 1999
13 out of 13 found this review helpful
I absolutely could not put this book down. It is an amazing story. It stimulated my mind to hear how Dr. Brand did not accept common knowledge but really saw and listened to patients and developed a whole new treatment program for leprosy. Am I as alert and aware to what goes on around me? Dr. Brand's personal story is very interesting as are his views on hospitalization in third-world countries and also on raising children in those locations. In addition there is help with our own attitudes and actions in times of pain. This is one of my favorite books of all time and a "good read".
Extraordinary September 8, 1999
Dr. N. E. Whitehead (Lower Hutt, New Zealand)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
The story of one man who almost single-handedly had an enormous impact on leprosy and diabetes treatment. It revolutionised my ideas about pain and I think it will yours. A rare book and one that will stay in consciousness as a very important contribution
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