Spare Parts

A fascinating book * Daily Mail *Compelling – Christopher Hart * The Sunday Times *The charm of Spare Parts comes from situating these landmarks in a wider history of ideas * Spectator *A thrilling and often terrifying ride through transplantation and the theories and techniques that made it possible … tantalizing – Robert Sullivan * The New York Times *Anyone interested in the history of surgery will find much to amaze and startle in Paul Craddock’s Spare Parts: A Surprising History of Transplants * Independent *Excellent … Much has been written about this subject, but with Spare Parts Paul Craddock has achieved something unique: a serious, entertaining and thoroughly researched work that usefully sets the history of transplantation in the context of the evolution of ideas about the human body – Thomas Morris * TLS *Craddock combines meticulous scholarship with wry wit in lucid prose which is all the more powerful for being understated … Spare Parts is a triumph * Roger Kneebone, author of ‘Expert’ *I read Spare Parts with my mouth open, my eyes popping and my brain fizzing. It’s a fascinating exploration of just how far humans will go to stay on the right side of death. I can’t think of any other book whose pages will make you laugh, gasp, grimace and wince. Spare Parts is a triumph of medical story-telling * Michael Brooks, author of ‘The Quantum Astrologer’s Handbook’ and ‘Science(ish)’ *This is a fascinating and sure-footed exploration of the medical, historical and mythological landscape in which humans use parts from each other to make themselves whole. With compassion and insight, Paul Craddock elucidates vital questions about what it means to be human and to realise our dreams of survival * Dr Emily Mayhew, author of ‘Wounded’ and ‘The Four Horsemen’ *This is a captivating and absorbing read that surprises on every page whether it be from prosthetic noses of the 16th Century to modern day bio-printing and stem cell technology * Professor Dame Sue Black, author of ‘All That Remains’ *

Paul Craddock is Honorary Senior Research Associate in the Division of Surgery and Interventional Sciences at UCL Medical School in London. His PhD explored how transplants have for centuries invited reflection on human identity, a subject on which he has also lectured internationally. Spare Parts, which won a Special Commendation from the Royal Society of Literature, is his first book.