Spoon River Revisited

Few readers will be acquainted with the inspiration of this intriguing book, The Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, published nearly 100 years ago. It is a series of fictional epitaphs in the form of autobiographical prose poems. Dan is a medical doctor and healer who takes a wholistic approach and is highly critical of the excesses of the US medical system that is currently the third leading cause of death - amounting to 250,000 people - after cancers and heart disease. Given a different medical philosophy, one could be naturally indignant at this little appreciated statistic and the vast profits made by pharmaceutical companies. To this one can add 350,000 adverse drug reactions and the fact that pharmaceutical companies are actively engaged in undermining natural approaches to health. Each chapter contains a short introduction to the topic before a number of case histories formatted as prose poems. The very simplicity and straightforwardness of the narratives heighten their impact and touch the heart. They also serve as a timely warning and introduce a number of safer and more effective modalities.