Cover Image: The Facemaker

The Facemaker

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Member Reviews

Although fascinating premise, turned out to be too graphic for me, but I am absolutely too squeamish.

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DNF - I wanted to enjoy this so much but I just wasn't able to become invested in it. I will try again when/if there is an audiobook version.

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By strange coincidence, I started reading this the same week that I had to get stitches for the first time in my life, so imagining what the people described went through resonated on a different level. I follow the author on Twitter and was excited that Netgalley had her book available!

This follows the journey of the doctor who pioneered facial reconstruction surgery during WWI. It's one of those books where you want to pause and text your friends the random facts you come across. I had no idea that pilots didn't even have parachutes yet in WWI. And that plastic surgery actually existed before what we now call "plastic" was invented.

I love learning about medical stuff but whew boy, this is NOT an easy read on an emotional level. Things that haunted the soldiers who experienced them for the rest of their lives are probably going to stick in your mind longer than you'd like them to after reading about them, too. Still, totally fascinating.

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This was a fascinating look at the beginning of plastic surgery and specifically facial reconstruction surgery during World War 1. I really didn't know anything about the medical advances that took place around World War 1, so it was very interesting to learn about the factors that made survivable facial injuries more common, and the innovative work Dr. Gillies did to repair the damage.

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This book is about the history of modern plastic surgery and how the original application of the surgery was used for disfigured soliders during World War I. Its also a history of the early plastic surgeon, Harold Gillies and how he was an early pioneer of modern day plastic surgery. He had used artists to document the progress of the surgeries of his patients, since many of them needed multiple surgeries in order to heal the injuries they had endured during the war. This book also shows how medicine can be an art as well as a science. I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review from NetGalley

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Thanks to NetGalley for providing the ebook in exchange for a review.

This book was so good! I don’t know when I first heard of Harold Gillies, sometime after I watched Boardwalk Empire and liked Jack Huston’s character - the character has a mask to cover his facial damage and I wanted to know more, which led me to the work that Harold Gillies did.

Gillies pioneered modern plastic surgery and realized the importance of working with other sorts of people. His teams included surgeons, dentists, artists, and whoever else had a needed skill. This book focuses on the men and women who worked with Gillies - the medical techniques they created or perfected, the artistic records of procedures, the prosthetics that were created - and the patients who needed his help.

This was fascinating and read easily. There were times it felt a little repetitive as most chapters followed the same format, but the information was all really interesting and presented well.

I’ve been meaning to read Lindsey Fitzharris’s other book, The Butchering Art, so when this came up on NetGalley I was interested. I’m so glad I read this and will need to bump her other book up my tbr list.

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THE FACEMAKER is an impressive, intense, and fact-packed book, not only about the development of plastic surgery, but also an insight into World War One and its devastating effects. I admit my understanding of the war was negligible prior to reading this, but now I have learned enough to have my interest piqued and I want to learn more. I have just requested a review copy of MEN OF 18 IN 1918 by Frederick James Hodges, a book that I would have certainly passed over if I had not read THE FACEMAKER.

Dr Harold Gillies is the titular surgeon who is constantly creating new ways to help disfigured soldiers (warning! Link leads to extremely graphic photos that may be disturbing) live normal lives. It is noted that those who had lost limbs were celebrated as heroes fighting for their country, while those who sustained facial injuries were shunned and considered freaks. The reasoning behind this is: faces and their ability to create expressions are what makes us “human”, and any deviation of what is considered “normal” creates discomfort. A face without a nose, or with a shattered jaw is difficult to look at, and so those poor soldiers were hidden away from the general public. The wards where those men were kept contained no mirrors, lest they catch a glimpse of themselves and lose the will to live.

Gillies is not the only doctor mentioned in this book; many other courageous surgeons contributed to the effort to repair these poor soldiers. The book is interspersed with descriptions of action on the Western Front, excerpts from diary entries from the soldiers that were lucky enough to have their journals survive (even if they didn’t), and accounts of how collaboration among the doctors furthered their knowledge and experience.
What fascinated me the most was hearing about the soldier’s activity on the battlefield, how he came to be injured, then his ordeal with Dr Gillies, enduring multiple operations while new techniques were tried time and time again. The book does contain a lot of graphic detail, so if you are squeamish, be aware.

I learned about artwork bringing attention to the soldier’s plight – one of the more poignant ones is the painting by John Singer Sargent entitled Gassed. The human cost of war is depicted in this 21-foot-long epic work. Other paintings and drawings are noted throughout the book, explaining how these methods helped the physicians rebuild faces. Sculpture was also used; multiple casts were made as the recreation and correction of each visage progressed.

The epilogue of THE FACEMAKER notes how plastic surgery evolved from a necessity to a luxury; rhinoplasty, facelifts, and the like were performed by Gillies long after the war was over. He continued to help others feel better about themselves until he died in 1960. He was a true visionary whose work ethic and kindness made the world a better place for many, many others.

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Excellent account of the medical challenges and advances made during and after World War I in facial reconstruction. Dr. Harold Gillies was a pioneer in this field and pulled in other doctors, dentists, artists, and sculptors to help give these disfigured men back their lives. Working under terrible conditions and faced with multiple medical obstacles, this team did perform miracles.

Given the subject matter, this is probably not a book for the squeamish but the story of the horrendous surgeries and Dr. Gillies' work was fascinating. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

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The Facemaker is the fascinating story of Harold Gillies, whose work in developing the legitimacy of plastic surgery, not only gave new life to disfigured World War I solders, but who also served to create a new field of surgery. Lindsey Fitzharris has created a book rich in history and personal stories.

Fitzharris relates the stories of the many successes that Gillies created for his patients, whose lives has been shattered by the bullets, bombs, and fires of war. She also includes an essential history of the Great War, including the important battles and the final signing of the armistice. The irony of this final signing of documents to end the war, also included some of the men, whose faces had been destroyed by 4 years of war.

To create the many different techniques needed to reconstruct a face destroyed by war, Gillies needed to experiment with different techniques that would prove successful. There were failures of course, and Fitzharris gives voice to the failures, as well as the successes. However, The Facemaker is much more than a limited biography of Gillie's career, it is also includes a history of the easiest attempts at facial reconstruction, many of which date from hundreds of years earlier. Gillies was able to take these earliest attempts at facial reconstruction and remake them to fit the damages of a current war. What becomes clear in Fitzharris' book is that the Great War is not the first conflict to destroy a soldier's face, nor would it becomes the last war to do so.

The last chapter of The Facemaker is rich with notes and sources for Fitzharris' book. There were no photos in the ARC that I was provided by the publisher, Farrar, Straus and Giroux. I am unsure if photos or illustrations were to be included in the final print copy. I thank the author and publisher for providing access to this ARC. My review includes my own honest thoughts of this book's strengths. I highly recommend this book and thank NetGalley for listing it.

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special thanks to net galley for giving me a book about a doctor (not sarcasm really but doctors, specially surgeons make me uncomfortable)
so being inside one's head has definitely been an experience. i am a history aficionado, so this definitely hit the spot.
I would personally love to thank Lindsey Fitzharris for the research effort (at least it seems that way), loved it.

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*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Great read, very interesting! i read a book last year that was a fictional story of one of the "Silver masked" men and another one earlier this year about transplants so there was some stuff i already knew and cases i had heard of before but this was much more in depth and detail. would buy!

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This was an amazing story about a plastic surgeon, a pioneer to this field, named Harold Gillies. The amazing things he was able to accomplish giving many young men their faces back after the devastating wounds they received to their face on the battlefield during World War 1 was awe inspiring.

This was not an easy book to read as Lindsey Fitzharris brought into the story details of battles and the horrible wounds the men suffered. In her telling, she made the battle scenes, the operations, the novel approaches come alive. It was a story of innovation, a story of venturing into an unknown region, a story of the brave men and a doctor who gave them hope.

Gilles was an amazing man, not only as a doctor, but also as a man who believed in the men he treated and strived to be able to remove them from the "monster" image so many had. It was a horror that Gillies and others were able to remove from these boys so that they were able to lead normal lives and not be shunned in a public forum.

Without men like Dr Gillies, the art of plastic surgery would not have progressed so far and be what it is today. The courage, the belief in one's fellow man, and the ultimate work of Gillies and his team made life bearable and wonderful for so many boys who gave so much for their country during the war.

Fascinating story and thanks to Lindsay Fitzharris, Allen Lane, and NetGaley for a copy of this story.

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Absolutely fascinating! This book was difficult to read at times, as it doesn't shy away from the brutal facts of World War I. But it was also well written and empathetic, and the story of how Harold Gellies refined his skills on the fly to restore the badly damaged faces of so many soldiers is positively astounding.

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As a nurse who also enjoys history, I appreciated the extensive background on reconstructive surgery set during WWI, and the pioneer physicians and other specialists who led the way. The personal stories of the injured soldiers brought the book to life.

I do think I would have enjoyed it a bit more without the details of specific battles, and with a focus that was more narrow. 3.5 stars

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From the award-winning author of The Butchering Art comes another fascinating look into the world of medicine. With her new book The Facemaker, Lindsey Fitzharris brings warmth, humor, and humanity to the story of Harold Gillies, a surgeon who used techniques both old and pioneering to repair the faces of British soldiers ravaged by emerging military weaponry during WW1. Led by impeccable research couched in riveting and accessible prose, Fitzharris effortlessly transports the reader from the battlefields of The Great War to the life-changing surgeries that restored dignity to British veterans. Highly recommended!

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I knew a tiny bit about the subject of facial reconstruction [and the masks that were also used to cover defects that could not be corrected by surgery] that started in WW1 due to an excellent historical mystery series that talks about it is several of its book [Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear], but didn't know how it started and the Doctor that really created it and kept it going.

The author is a really good writer [and the narrator that was picked was also excellent] and there were moments when I could hear the bombs falling and the men screaming and it was very disturbing while also being educational. There is so much about that war [and war in general, but particularly WW1] that was horrific and the battles that rages for months at a time and it was almost too much to read at times, and heartbreaking always.

And yet, in the midst of all that horror, there was Dr. Gillies. He was an amazing man who just wanted to give these poor men their lives back in the best way possible and while he didn't always accomplish this, he did the very best he could and I think he should have gotten every medal possible for the work he did [and then did again in the second world war] and the men and women he trained in how to care for such injured men. It is a powerful story that will not soon leave a person [I know I will never forget this one] and you will forever be changed by these stories and the Dr. who leads them.

I have the author's other book about Joseph Lister and once I have settled from this one, I think I will dive into that one. She is a very gifted writer and I know I will be reading anything she writes.

I was also granted a audiobook ARC for this book and wow, was that narrator fantastic - he is now added to my "favorites" list [and I will be looking for more books that he narrates in the future]. He really makes the story come alive and reads the stories of war and destruction and battle scenes with such reverence and respect - I am not sure how he read some of this book without breaking into tears, Kudos to him and a job very well done.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lindsey Fitzharris, Daniel Gillies - Narrator, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, and Macmillan Audio for providing this ARC and audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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A great piece of nonfiction. I had fun learning all about this new historical figure. Accessible and easy writing style. I would recommend for fans of The Butchering Art and other medical history books. Highly enjoyable

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The Facemaker is a nonfiction book covering facial reconstructive surgery during World War I. The book focuses on the work of Harold Gillies, one of the surgeons who pushed the boundaries of plastic surgery during this time. I'm the granddaughter of a plastic surgeon who specialized in hand reconstruction and am generally interested in the history of medicine, so I was excited to request this book and to read it! What I was not expecting was how blown away I was by this story and the compelling writing.

I loved this book. I never thought that I would look forward to reading about facial reconstruction or surgery before going to bed but Fitzharris proved me wrong! I had such a good time reading it that I was upset when it ended because I wanted to know more. The story was so compelling, the writing so good, the time period so interesting, and the subject so new to me that I couldn't put the book down. And nonfiction is usually the hardest for me to get through!

As you can imagine, this book is pretty gruesome. If you have ANY issues with blood, gore, detailed medical procedures, or anything of that ilk, this is NOT the book for you. I felt like the descriptions weren't overly gratuitous or macabre, but it definitely goes into detail throughout the book.

I HIGHLY recommend this book if you are at all into nonfiction, the history of medicine, biography, or just a good story. 5/5 stars from me. Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for the electronic advanced reader's copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

CW: Violence, medical procedures, blood, detailed descriptions of surgery, war, death

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As a future History teacher, I love reading fascinating stories across the world and across different eras. I love reading about advancements and changes to the world and one author who brings you into the decade and shows the medical advancements of the time is Lindsey Fitzharris. Her first book The Butchering Art was an enthralling read about Victorian Surgery and she delivers another phenomenal book with The Facemaker!

This book delivers with Fitzharris bringing you into the period and not only describing what the world of surgery was like during WW1 but also just how the world ran in the time period. The book never drones on about certain facts and instead reads like a story and keeps you connected by funny anecdotes and strange and eccentric characters who would be on the forefront of Plastic Surgery and Facial Reconstruction. This book is much like the way History class should be: detailed, fun, enthralling but also moving and introspective.

Fitzharris allows readers to see just how difficult the war was but especially what it was like for the wounded and just how revolutionary Gillies and his colleagues were when it came to the reconstruction methods.

Overall Fitzharris creates a book that should be read by any fan interested in WW1 and those who enjoy medical history. This is definitely going to be on my class required reading!!

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The Facemaker is a unique look at the history of modern plastic surgery which emerged during WW1. It follows Harold Gillies and his evolution as a surgeon, creating new techniques and assembling a team of professionals who would work to give back soldiers their identities. The book also explores the beginnings of anesthesiology, hematology, and other medical sciences. It is fascinating and impeccably researched, filled with so much detail. It reads like a fiction book with primary source quotes sprinkled in. There are happy and funny moments among the tragic reality. We are able to understand how both the doctors and patients felt, not just what happened. Something that I loved about this book was that it was patient-focused, and we learned all aspects of the soldiers' stories: from the battlefield, throughout their operations and healing process, and their life after the war. This book does contain graphic descriptions of face wounds and surgeries, but they are necessary to understand the extent of the war's destruction and how talented these surgeons were. Fitzharris beautifully weaves a tale of how healing and creation came from the destruction of war.

Thank you to the publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Netgalley for an unpublished copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

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