Yet the book fails in one regard. We get an idea of how horrendous life was in early Europe in the 16th century, however, this does not give us an idea of the world as a whole as it related to medicine.

At the time when most of Europe lived in hovels, squalor and experiencing rampant disease, the Africans, Chinese and Arabians lived in comparative splendour. They were the ancient Phoenicians, the Astronomers, the originators of Math, and herbal, i.e., natural medicine.

This book also fails to mention, although much of history has been lost in that regard, the role of "wise women" , healers and mystics, who, largely were destroyed for having the "heretic" power to restore life. Also, in Scotland many female priests were healers, and mediators, before the Catholic church (and Rome) tortured and killed most of them to rid the church of such an "unnatural" office.

Additionally,many of those who died of such diseases in Europe were the peasants.

Although this book deals largely with one man, I would have preferred seeing much more of where his ideas of medicine came from - since we now know that travel, however long and arduous, took place quite frequently than once supposed.

made me want to run out and buy the book even before i finished his review - give this guy more space !!

I hope the book is half as good...

Wait a second. You cannot call this man a scientist, mad or otherwise. He believed in the four humors, gave medical attributes to plants based on anthropomorphising them, meaning if it looks like a human organ, then that plant can be used to treat that organ. If he cured anyone of anything, it was probably because that person had a spontaneous recovery based on his own immune system.

The closest he came to science was when he theorized about a single circulatory system. Before then "medical science" thought there were two from seeing the different colors of arterial blood and venous blood. But he did not establish this by cutting up cadavers.

He was like the other doctors of his time talking about humors, and giving astrological archetype attributes to parts of the body, and feeding people mercuric oxide (cinnabar) as a treatment. Insulting the nonsense medical writings of Hippocrates, Galen, or Ibn Sina (Avicenna) or the town authorities did not make him a scientist.

This book sounds like a hagiography of a "bad old boy." I would not read it based on this review.

Chemistry began

With cooking, not alchemy;

Measure, mix and heat.

I think either Ball or Cosgrove has it wrong when translating Paracelsus as "superior to Celsus" - my reading of the name would have it "equal to Celsus". One could say that that was no less arrogant a self-assessment, grant you, but somehow it seems more in line with his love of reason.

Otherwise I look forward to a good read ...