Blue Collar, Blue Scrubs: The Making of a Surgeon

Just as entertaining and informative as Collins' first book "Hot Lights, Cold Steel." It is a fast read in that it's hard to put down. Collins describes how he decided to become a doctor and his life during medical school at Loyola. Only complaint I have is that he would have written this book before "Hot Lights, Cold Steel."

This is my first review. I read Collins' first book - 'The Making of a Surgeon' - which I thought was terrific. I have read a lot about medicine but But 'Blue Collar' really takes the cake. This is truly a book about life. It happens to be a doctor's life but it covers the whole scope of a person's efforts to find the right job, have the fortitude to pursue it, find the right gal - and his wife is just fabulous - and so on. It's exciting in many parts but so touching in his relationships, so HONEST in his reflections as an MD. I just loved it. As I said it is a book about out life which is by the way very humorous and well written to boot.

In the vein of the Star Wars trilogy, Dr. Collins has followed up the book about his residency with the prologue, the captivating story of how an underemployed college graduate cum construction worker got motivated to go back to school as a premed. The story follows him thru the crucible of applying to med school and then his med school years. Dr. Collins has a real gift for writing. Some portions of the book are hilarious, as he describes life in a rough-and-tumble family of several boys, the mailman-ambushing family dog, and life in blue collar jobs. But this book is much more than just the story of life on a different side of the tracks. We see Dr. Collins struggle with the realization that everyone can't be saved, ponder how a set of rational decisions in treating a terminal illness can lead to an outcome nobody really wanted, share with him the anguish of treating a badly burned infant and inflict pain. We get a glimpse of how doctors come to compartmentalize emotion in order to get their work done in what can be quite trying circumstances. And yet one senses that Dr. Collins has come out of this the doctor we all hope to have, one that can make decisions dispassionately and yet still cares about his patients. One couldn't carry the stories around all the years he has if they didn't have an impact, and we share with him the struggle to put them in their place.

I totally enjoyed this book. Dr. Collins is an amazing man with a very interesting life, from hard-labor construction, to cab driving, to fulfilling his dream and becoming a doctor. He's a great storyteller who really drew me into the book so I couldn't put it down (this is unusual for me with nonfiction). He made me wish I knew him and his family personally, that he would make a great friend (albeit without a lot of spare time!) Although this is actually his second book, it's sort of a prequel to his first. Since this is about his life before becoming a doctor and how he decided to become a doctor, I'm glad I read it first, and now look forward to reading Hot Lights, Cold Steel.

Dr. Collins definitely has the Irish gift of storytelling; his writing and memory are so detailed that the reader quickly obtains a vivid image of Collins road from "rock thrower" to pre-med to medical student, and finally to doctor. However, the more important theme is Collins' personal maturation from young man to grown man during this journey. Although it is clear that Collins' family gave him a very solid foundation upon to build, he simultaneously mixes humor with heartache (or rather, grueling work ethic) to reflect on his early 20s when he was less mature and searching for personal fulfillment and how on the road to medical school, he also developed into a very well-rounded and content family man. His personal journey is the true focal point of this book, while the professional journey is important, but secondary; for this reason, "Blue Collar, Blue Scrubs" is a great book for any age and any career path, but would also be *perfect* for a recent male college graduate. Toward the end of the book, it is interesting to read how his new roles as a husband and father begin to influence the various situations that he sees in the hospital. I should additionally note that I may be somewhat biased in my review, seeing as I am a non-traditional, Irish-American student (and new mother) applying to medical school, so much of what Dr. Collins writes resonated greatly for me. However, I can also say (with experience) that anyone considering a trip to medical school via the non-traditional route should read this book for an idea of the type of work ethic that is necessary. The other thing that Collins very importantly writes is that keeping outside interests is of importance - I learned this the hard way!