A biographical history of veterinary pathology

declared that the hospital was fit to take sick and wounded French soldiers. The hospital remained in existence until March 1919, expanding to over 600 beds. Women from Royaumont also managed a speciallyconstructed casualty clearing station nearer the front, which was established at VillersCotterets in 1917. Eileen Crofton tells the story of the hospital, its staff and its patients with considerable skill, weaving together a narrative of war-work with pen-portraits of some of the key figures associated with the hospital; not least the indomitable Chief Medical Officer, Miss Frances Ivens. Crofton paints a vivid picture of medical work, of daily chores, and of relations between patients and staff. One aspect of wartime medical work which comes through strongly in Crofton's account is the enormous importance of small details in maintaining the morale of both patients and staff. Nothing was more important than the secondment of one former patient-a famous Paris chef-to the hospital kitchens. He remained virtually the only man employed at the hospital during the war, barring a few of the patients during their convalescence. Rich in detail, and nicely balanced between narrative and personal testimony, this book provides a valuable insight into the nature of medical work during the First World War. Specialists will see the Royaumont hospital as a useful point of contrast to hospitals under military or British Red Cross control, but the book deserves and is likely to achieve a far wider readership.