The Death Committee

Three young doctors face professional and personal challenges in this “admirably researched, ambitious, diligent, and swiftly paced” novel by a New York Times–bestselling author (Chicago Sun-Times).

“Noah Gordon has succeeded in writing a book which . . . helps the reader to understand what goes into the making of a modern surgeon. . . . A hard book to put down.” —The Boston Globe

Three young men from different backgrounds have graduated from medical schools and become surgical fellows at a leading teaching hospital in Boston. They learn to become surgeons, to communicate with patients and families, and to be observed and appraised by their peers and professors on daily rounds. And each month—sometimes with dry mouth and rapid pulse—each attends the meeting of the Mortality Conference, known to all as the Death Committee, which examines every patient loss for possible human error, in order to prevent it from happening again. How the Death Committee affects and is affected by the lives, loves, and ambitions of three new doctors is the theme of this intriguing and profoundly moving novel.

“A big, authentic novel.” —The New York Times

“If you like a good story, told with a wealth of detail and insight into human nature on the part of doctors as well as patients, this book is just what the doctor ordered. You will not be able to put it down.” —The Hartford Times

Originally published in 1969.