Conceptionally this is a well written book, with an interesting focal topic. As someone who is both female, and works in the medical profession after studying an msc in genomic medicine, I was immediately eager to see what light this book would shed on female involvement in medicine through the ages.

The author is the perfect person for this job and her passion for this topic clearly shows through the writing; Karen Gevirtz specialises in the history of science and medicine (alongside gender studies). I was intrigued to see what her proffessional background brought to the topic and wasn't disappointed. It's clear that the author has done her research well; leaning on a variety of different materials created by both men and woman (so as to give an unbiased view). It's also important to note that this book is not trying to be against men, or our current medical system, rather is just sharing the journey and story of woman's involvement in medicine. It is a non-judgemental read, that doesn't advocate for one thing or the other which makes it an easier pill to swallow (sorry, couldn't resist!). There are some areas that I felt unsure on, but the author is clear on advising that 'the book is mine, the history is shared, and the choices are yours.' - I enjoyed forming my own opinions on the evidence that she presented and she includes references at the back.

My only bugbear is a personal one and shouldn't dissaude you from reading; I'm used to reading these kind of topics from a more medical standpoint, and I feel this leans more towards history/story telling style of writing which made it hard for me to engage at points. I think this will appeal to a greater variety of readers however; those who don't tend to read factual books will appreciate the ease and story telling beauty with which Karen explains the topics, and those who are interested in science, are presented with a great starting board to then go delve off more deeply into areas that interest them.

Thank you to the author and publishers for allowing me to read this ARC.

The history of medicine is absolutely fascinating, and Gevirtz certainly proves this with her (sometimes overly) academic text. I do feel this book could have been structured in a different way, but that's my only complaint.

This book gives the history of to how we got to our current situation with for-profit medicine. It is very well researched and really causes pause for thought. I love it when the author writes, “The book is mine, the history is shared, and the choices are yours.”. I’ll definitely think more about my choices going forward.
#TheApothecarysWife #NetGalley

This book filled a niche I didn't know I needed! Loved learning the history of apothecaries and how medicines have evolved, very well researched and presented.