The Story of Pain

Historians and general readers alike will find much of interest in this entertaining and thoughtful book, with its meticulously researched wealth of patient accounts throughout history. * History Today, Stephanie Eichberg *
Joanna Bourke, in The Story of Pain, provides a highly original and thought-provoking study ofthe modern experiences of pain with the potential to open up innumerable areas of inquiry in medical humanities research. * British Journal for the History of Science, Ian Miller *
Joanna Bourke's premise is that pain has a history: it is not simply a physiological event but also a cultural affair, making "pain" inherently social. We really do feel differently, react differently, in relation to pain, depending upon the metaphors and language we have for understanding it. * Lynne Segal, Book of the Year 2014, Times Higher Education *
In The Story of Pain: From Prayer to Painkillers historian Joanna Bourke charts the ways in which pain was felt in the past and shows that sensation itself is inextricably bound up with mind, culture and soul. She scours medical and psychological sources, images, gestures and written testimony to build up a picture of suffering and its interpretations since the 18th century. Like Gawande, her underlying question is: can we learn to "suffer better"? * Lisa Appignanesi, Book of the Year 2014, Guardian *
This is a serious, absorbing book * John Hinton, Catholic Herald *
Joanna Bourkes brilliant study of pain shows us exactly why pain is both so very personal to each of us and so elusive to scientific description, even in the 21st century. * Sander Gilman, Irish Times *
The breadth of The Story of Pain is one of its principal strengths, as the book's fascinating and illuminating examples shift masterfully and continually across the Western world and between the 18th century and the present day ... Bourke has provided a remarkable book, which is both highly valuable in its own right and which also provides the groundwork and impetus for further study. The Story of Pain is a detailed, thought-provoking and fascinating piece of historical scholarship. * Dr. Jennifer Crane, Reviews in History *
Bourke's book is a magnificent feat of research ... As an insight into the roots of medical perspectives on pain, and why we're often so bad at tackling it, Bourke's history will help. * Gavin Francis, London Review of Books *
Bourke has interesting things to say about the language of pain ... [She] has read widely, and produced some interesting reflections on what it means to be in pain, how pain is socially structured and dealth with, as well as the limits of our contemporary embrace of chemical means of coping with pain. * Andrew Scull, The Times Literary Supplement *
The Story of Pain is a fascinating rousing story of mad and wanton cruelty: throughout human history, such shafts of compassion only occasionally and reluctantly break through. * Roger Lewis, Daily Mail *
What Bourke has given us is an extensive and beautifully organized collection of materials that will serve as an invaluable resource for researchers from many different disciplines. It is a formidable scholarly achievement, which sheds a varied and often unexpected light on one of the most pervasive and challenging aspects of human existence. * John Cottingham, Tablet *
It is a tightly argued account of pain as vital to the concerns of bioscientists and clinicians as it is to the interests of scholars of the humanities and the human sciences. * Brian Hurwitz, Times Higher Education *
This is a compelling history of a great source of human misery. * Leyla Sanai, Independent on Sunday *
[A] perceptive study. * Nature *
A serious, absorbing book * James McConnachie, Sunday Times *
Enthralling ... Drawing on philosophy, history, medicine, literature and even theology. The Story of Pain invites us to look again at a fundamental aspect of human life, and to reconsider the richness and the poverty of pain. * Richard Bennet, Lancet *
Erudite and witty ... Joanna Bourke is that rare bird, an academic who manages to combine erudite scholarship with a sharp wit and an accessible prose style. This is a bold and impressive book about an enemy that knows no historical or cultural bounds. * Salley Vickers, The Observer *
[A] riveting study, which feels timely and important. * Max Liu, The Independent *
The Story of Pain shines valuable light into a universal experience. * Nicholas Shakespeare, The Daily Telegraph *
The Story of Pain conveys sensations with wincing precision and an admirable humanity. * Simon Ings, New Scientist *
Ambitious and original. * Jonathan Rée, the guardian *
Enthralling. * Jim Young, Glycosmedia *
A book that deserves wide readership. * Church of England newspaper *
Joanna Bourke has drawn a fascinating picture of pain from a very broad perspective both in terms of time and in the sources she uses. We see how attitudes to pain have changed over the centuries and how our modern technological advances are again changing how we communicate pain and its suffering. Are we less courageous when dealing with pain than our ancestors were? asks Joanna Bourke. Astonishing what I have learnt about pain from a historian, which will be of value in my clinical work. An absorbing and thought provoking book, a must read for pain physicians. * Professor Joanna Zakrzewska, UCL *