An Evening With Theodore H. Schwartz on Gray Matters: A Biography of Brain Surgery
Brain surgery is a relatively new and mysterious profession, but in Gray Matters: A Biography of Brain Surgery, Dr. Theodore H. Schwartz, M.D., pulls back the surgical drapes on this lifesaving specialty. Warm, rigorous, and deeply insightful, the book brings readers into his world and shares what it’s like to hold the scalpel, wield the drill, extract a tumor, fix a bullet hole, and remove a blood clot – when every second can mean the difference between life and death. It’s a riveting tale of how brain surgery arrived at its current state and why the road to manipulating this extraordinarily complex three-pound organ has not always been smooth. From the earliest, pioneering procedures to the new frontier of brain-computer interfaces, neurosurgery has changed and expanded at a rapid-fire pace over the last 120 years. Through case studies that bring to life the complexity and fragility of the brain, readers will explore the brain injuries and surgeries of figures like Presidents Lincoln, Kennedy, and Biden; screen stars Bob Saget, Michael J. Fox, Emilia Clarke, and Natasha Richardson; athletes Muhammad Ali, NFL player “Iron Mike” Webster, and Lance Armstrong; and many others. In each person’s story, Schwartz pinpoints critical moments where brain surgeons made the crucial difference and what was really on the line. This is a book that’s as full of science and history as it is heart and humanity.
As a special welcome to this year’s Fair, Miami Book Fair is offering this Evenings With program FREE to all fairgoers. When securing your tickets for this session, kindly consider making a donation to MBF to support our work and your Miami literary community.
This is a ticketed event that includes free access to this program as well as the weekend Street Fair, where you’ll find literary events, live music, children’s activities, booksellers, local artisans, and gourmet delights! For information on how to access all MBF25 programs, visit MiamiBookFair.com.
Evenings With tickets are available to Friends of the Fair – who enjoy early access to these programs – exclusively at this time. If you’d like to take advantage of the same benefit and more, consider becoming a member of the FOTF family today!
