Book jacket torn and in poor condition Spine is slightly skewed forward at front t cover, but is still tight and all pages attached Doubleday, 1974 book club edition, 409 pages An engrossing novel about a vast metropolitan hospital and the fast breaking life-and-death dramas that are the daily experience of those who run it. It is a revealing picture of powerful men and women whose loves, hopes, and fears are deeply intertwined with the devastating tragedies and rich rewards of modern medicine. From the complex operating theaters where surgical miracles are performed with cool precision to the tension-packed emergency rooms where a second's hesitation can often mean disaster, they pursue the complex dreams and entangled emotions that shape their lives. And as their separate stories un-fold, each in its own way exerts a far-reaching effect on the fate of the hospital itself.