We are pleased to offer Alan Franks’ thrilling new book ‘The Notes of Dr Newgate’ (Muswell Press Ltd, 2013) for review. Expressions of interest are welcome from across the medical humanities.
The Notes of Dr. Newgate is the chronicle of a middle-aged suburban GP whose life is undergoing a series of crises. His home life is a set of estrangements from his troubled wife Imogen, his angry student son Ricky and the au pair Inez, whose continuing presence in the house he can’t quite explain. William Newgate is himself recovering from the serious condition of alcoholism.
His life is thrown into chaos by the arrival of a young patient, Serena, who is convinced he has the answers to her confused and abused life. In unsparing detail he records the development of their relationship – a dangerous and reckless liaison which will almost certainly spell the end of his career, and more, if it comes to light – as it surely will.
The Notes of Dr. Newgate is a richly comic but profound study of addiction in its myriad forms – not just drink and drugs but also the lethal lures of gambling, power, lust, even love and faith themselves.
If you are keen to review ‘The Notes of Dr Newgate’ (approximately 1,000-1,500 words maximum in length), then please email our reviews editor with a short explanation of why you are well placed to review the book.