A book about a hospital in a medium-sized city 60 miles north of the United States—Canadian border should not, on the face of it, tug at the heart or quicken the pulse of an American reader. Yet it does just that. Never mind that this reviewer happens to have witnessed some of the events described in the book and that his nostalgic bias is showing. The book transcends parochial nostalgia. Its unfolding story of a hospital, which grew from a small "cottage industry" 70 years ago into a major center of teaching, research, and patient care, makes absorbing reading. The hospital emerges as a living organism, with dedicated physicians, nurses, service personnel, volunteer workers, and concerned philanthropists contributing to its growth. Theirs was a labor of love, as was the writing of this book.
Having read so much about the cold, dehumanized, impersonal modern hospital, the reader will find welcome