Tag: non-ficiton

This Won’t Hurt: New health titles in the collection

Kath

We have another excellent selection of health books recently added to our collection to share with you this month.  No matter what age or stage of life you’re in, we’ve got something to help you live a healthy  life and answer questions that you might have about your health.

This won’t hurt : how medicine fails women / Bigg, Marieke
“The vast majority of medicines and treatments that we use today were designed for, and by, men and the myth that medicine is gender-neutral has had terrible repercussions for women. In This won’t hurt, Dr Marieke Bigg takes a deep dive into all the ways medicine is not gender neutral, using stories and experiences to demonstrate how these flawed mindsets have paved the way for sub-par treatment, and how prevailing attitudes in a patriarchal world can have unexpected effects far downstream.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Baby & toddler basics : expert answers to parents’ top 150 questions / Altmann, Tanya Remer
“This easy-to-use guide helps parents with evidence-based advice for dealing with the most common issues facing babies and toddlers, including breastfeeding, baby care, developmental stages, first aid and injuries, sleep, vaccines and more.” (Catalogue)

 

“You just need to lose weight” : and 19 other myths about fat people / Gordon, Aubrey
“In “You Just Need to Lose Weight,” Aubrey Gordon equips readers with the facts and figures to reframe myths about fatness in order to dismantle the anti-fat bias ingrained in how we think about and treat fat people. Bringing her dozen years of community organizing and training to bear, Gordon shares the rhetorical approaches she and other organizers employ to not only counter these pernicious myths, but to dismantle the anti-fat bias that so often underpin them.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Hello sleep : the science and art of overcoming insomnia without medications / Wu, Jade
” Wu’s practical recommendations support a philosophical theme: Sleep is a friend, and it’s the nurturing of our relationship with this friend–rather than an anxious nightly battle–that will give us sustainable sleep health. Wu believes this can make things worse for those with insomnia issues, making what was once easy and intuitive into something effortful and elusive. Instead, this book treats insomniacs with respect, by giving them knowledge and empowering them to trust themselves and their own sleep.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Queer conception : the complete fertility guide for queer and trans parents-to-be / Kali, Kristin L.
“The only evidence-based, up-to-date fertility guide for queer people from an experienced health care provider, this is also the first to be transgender inclusive and body-positive. Here, queer prospective parents will find sound advice for navigating complex medical, social and financial decisions. This book is for all LGBTQ+ readers interested in creating family through pregnancy: anyone who identifies as queer, lesbians, gay men, bisexual people, trans and nonbinary people, couples, single parents by choice, poly families, and coparents.” (Catalogue)

My brain still needs glasses : ADHD in adults / Vincent, Annick
“Did you know that over half of children affected by ADHD still show symptoms when they reach adulthood? Relying on the latest research in the field, this book is an indispensable guide for all those who want to understand and find tools to better cope with ADHD. Accessible and packed with illuminating testimonials, it takes the reader step by step through the clinical symptoms, diagnostic approach and pharmacological treatments available for this neurodevelopmental problem.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

How to eat more plants : transform your health with 30 plant-based foods per week (and why it’s easier than you think) / Rossi, Megan
“A fact-based guide to plant-based eating, explaining why a diverse diet is the key to better health-with 80 plant-packed recipes.” (Catalogue)

 

Arthritis / Fox, Barry
“Arthritis For Dummies helps you make sense of arthritis and understand your diagnosis and treatment options. This updated edition show you the latest advances in diagnostic techniques, medications, and treatment plans. With these expert tips and proven medical wisdom, you’ll be able to calm those joints, so you can get back to the business of living. Alternative medicine and lifestyle changes are covered, too–it’s your must-read guide to living a full life with arthritis.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Womb : the inside story of where we all began / Hazard, Leah
“In this book, midwife and bestselling author Leah Hazard sets out on a journey to explore the rich past, complex present and dynamic future of the uterus. She speaks to the Californian doctor who believes women deserve a period-free life; walks in the footsteps of the Scottish woman whose Caesarean section changed childbirth forever; uncovers America’s long history of forced and coercive sterilisation; observes uterine transplant surgery in Sweden and takes a very personal dive into the world of ‘womb wellness’.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The complex PTSD coping skills workbook : an evidence-based approach to manage fear and anger, build confidence, and reclaim your identity / Greenberg, Tamara McClintock
“Reclaim your life from C-PTSD with this powerful and compassionate workbook.  You’ll learn the most effective strategies to manage symptoms, overcome painful memories, and build self-confidence. Most importantly, you’ll find validation that your feelings aren’t “crazy” or “outsized,” and discover the skills needed to help you reclaim your life.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

For more new items in the collection, go to: What’s new & Popular / April 2023 (wcl.govt.nz)

‘Kōtare: Wellington City Libraries Presents’: our podcast channel

Neil

We have very exciting news! Wellington City Libraries has launched its own podcast channel called

Kōtare: Wellington City Libraries Presents 

In the very first episode of our new monthly series called Books from the Vault, we explore some of the treasures in our various collections. Our intrepid Library Specialists have dug deep into the vaults of our storage facility, Te Pātaka, and brought out a catalogue item that’s meaningful to them and then discussed it with our Fiction Specialist, Neil Johnstone.

In episode one, our Māori Specialist Ann Reweti discusses Rachael Selby’s Still Being Punished and the ongoing trauma of Māori speaking their own language. Children’s Specialist Joseph Robinson looks at the romanticised paintings of Peter McIntyre’s collection and how these works reflect a particular view of Aotearoa at the time of their creation.  Finally, Music Specialist Reece Davies has yet to prove he can read, and instead pulls an antique CD from the stacks, to elaborate on the influence and atmosphere of the post-metal band Isis‘s watery magnum opus, ‘Oceanic’.

Intrigued? You can listen to the full episode one here – or for a wee taster, press play on the embedded player below.

To subscribe, you can find all our podcasts on your favourite podcast player, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher.

Here are the titles mentioned from our collections, to reserve and borrow:

Still being punished / Selby, Rachael
“The stories collected here are told by Māori men and women who were physically disciplined at school for speaking the Māori language. A hugely important book about the ongoing trauma of Māori for speaking in their own language” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

 

Kakahi New Zealand / McIntyre, Peter
“Peter McIntyre’s romanticised paintings of Aotearoa reflect a particular artistic vision and view of Aotearoa  that reflects particular aspects of the time of their creation.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

Oceanic / Isis
“Post-metal band Isis’s watery magnum opus, ‘Oceanic’ met with a muted response on its release but went on to influence a whole generation of bands .” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

Medical tales that are more intense than detective stories

Xinxin

Medical jobs are usually intense rather than entertaining – apart from what happens on Shortland Street, and in these books! This blog features unique books about the pain, the humour and the detective-work required in the medical profession, and the extraordinary lives of doctors and nurses.

Undoctored : the story of a medic who r an outof patients / Kay, Adam
“This is Going to Hurt was read by millions, translated into 37 languages, and adapted into a major BBC television series. Adam Kay again have you in stitches in his painfully funny and startlingly powerful follow-up. In his most honest and incisive book, battered and bruised from his time on the NHS frontline, Kay wrote hilarious, heart-breaking, horrifying, humbling, and astonishing portrait of a life.” (Adapted from catalogue)

The flying doctor / Baldwin, Dave
“Second book after ‘Healthy bastards’, this time with his misadventures, escapades and high jinks from a life of medicine, aviation and hunting. From his early years struggling with dyslexia to graduating from med school, from learning to fly and joining the New Zealand Air Force to becoming a cardiologist at Palmerston North Hospital and setting up a general practice in Bulls. Well known for his eccentric personalist and unmistakably Kiwi turn of phrase, author tells a story that’s as highly entertaining and unique. ” (Adapted from catalogue)

Every patient tells a story : medical mysteries and the art of diagnosis / Sanders, Lisa
“This work presents an unflinching look inside the detective story that marks nearly every illness – the diagnosis and dilemmas that reveals the combination of uncertainty and intrigue that doctors face when confronting patients who are sick or dying. A healthy young man suddenly loses his memory; a young woman lies dying in the ICU—bleeding, jaundiced, incoherent—and none of her doctors know what is killing her.” (Adapted from Amazon.com)

The deadly dinner party and other medical detective stories / Edlow, Jonathan A
“Real-life medical detective stories, practicing physician and award-winning author shows the doctor as detective in stories that are as gripping as the best thrillers. A notorious stomach bug turns a suburban dinner party into a disaster that almost claims its host; a diminutive woman eats more than her football-playing boyfriend but continually loses weight; an executive is diagnosed with lung cancer, yet the tumors seem gone. ” (Adapted from catalogue)

The unexpected patient / McInnes, Himali
“The Unexpected Patient tells the stories of patients who impacted health carers in unforgettable ways: patients who showed stubborn perseverance on the road to recovery, who clung to hope in the face of unexpected trauma, and who illuminated the indomitable depths of the human spirit. The Unexpected Patient is about human relationships and the bonds forged between two people: a medic and that one, unforgettable patient.” (Adapted from catalogue)

The medicine : a doctor’s notes / Hitchcock, Karen
“In The Medicine, Dr Karen Hitchcock takes us to the frontlines of everyday treatment, turning her acute gaze to everything from the flu season to dementia, plastic surgery to the humble sick day. In an overcrowded, underfunded medical system, she explores how more of us can be healthier, and how listening carefully to a patient’s experience can be as important as prescribing a pill. These dazzling essays show Hitchcock to be one of the most fearless and illuminating medical thinkers of our time – reasonable, insightful and deeply humane.” (Adapted from catalogue)

The courage to care : a call for compassion / Watson, Christie
“Nurses have never been more important. We benefit from their expertise in our hospitals and beyond: in our schools, on our streets, in prisons, hospices and care homes. When we feel most alone, nurses remind us that we are not alone at all. We are all deserving of compassion, and as we share in each other’s suffering, Christie Watson shows us how we can find courage too. The courage to care.” (Adapted from catalogue)