First published 1997
A young doctor arrives at a remote village clinic, woefully unprepared for the medical challenges and bizarre encounters awaiting him. Isolated in the harsh Russian countryside, he confronts life-and-death surgeries with trembling hands and minimal training, battling both his own inexperience and the brutal realities of early 20th-century rural healthcare. Each patient presents a new nightmare: impossible procedures, limited resources, and medical challenges that test the boundaries of his skill and sanity. As winter deepens and complications mount, the doctor must transform from a terrified medical student into a resolute practitioner—or watch his patients die.
Genres: fiction, short-stories, historical-fiction, medical, 20th-century, russia
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, transformation
Setting: Moscow, Russia
Period: 20th-century
158 pages · Paperback · Harvill Press