A Fortunate Apprentice

As the title suggests, a central theme of this book is luck. When attending a Neurosurgical Congress the author had the good fortune to meet Professor Norman Dott and soon after joined his pioneering team. So began a rewarding career in neurosurgery at the Edinburgh Department of Surgical Neurology, as well as teaching positions at the University of Edinburgh. The author is keen to share his recollections of the many colourful characters and lively situations that shaped his life. Written in a lighter, more irreverent style than many medical memoirs, A Fortunate Apprentice is an accessible account of a career in brain surgery, suitable for the layperson and the doctor alike. It is also a humble reminder of the important parts that coincidence, chance and fortune play in our lives, in addition to hard work and determined studies.

John Shaw was a part time senior lecturer in Clinical Neuroscience and Child Life and Health of The University of Edinburgh and is a past president of the European Society of Paediatric Neurosurgery. In collaboration with Christopher Rush he published With Sharp Compassion - a biography of Professor Norman Dott.