Book description
Using the plights of twelve very different patients-from dignitaries at the nearby UN, to supermax prisoners at Riker's Island, to illegal immigrants, and Wall Street tycoons-Dr. Eric Manheimer "offers far more than remarkable medical dramas: he blends each patient's personal experiences with their social implications" (Publishers Weekly).
Manheimer was not…
Why read it?
1 author picked Twelve Patients as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
This book is the source material for New Amsterdam, the popular NBC series streaming on Netflix and Peacock. While the TV show struck me as a frenetic jumble of heavy-handed melodrama, the book takes a steadier, more realistic approach.
In each of the twelve stories, Manheimer, along with other dedicated physicians, strives to help each challenging patient battle disease while managing multiple complicating factors including socioeconomic distress, immigration policy, and the criminal justice system. I found the resolutions genuine if not always satisfying.
If you love Twelve Patients...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like Twelve Patients?
Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Twelve Patients.
Share your top 3 reads of 2026!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
186
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like Twelve Patients, you might also like...
Child of Vanris
At five years old, Kasiel was found with the pointed ends of his ears cut off. Despite that brutal start, he’s lived twelve peaceful years with the man who took him in. Keeping his hair long over his mutilated ears helps him hide the fact that he is Vanrian, a…
Almost Home
Almost Home is a fictional retelling of the last great tragedy of the Civil War.
In late April 1865, almost 2,000 newly freed Union prisoners of war are packed onto the steamer Sultana, in poor repair and with a listed capacity of 376 passengers. Among them are four Indiana soldiers…
