Academy Book Club with author Lauren Small and The Eye Begins to See
February 6, 2025 @ 4:00 pm – 5:30 pm
“What makes healers become killers? Inspired by the life of Dr. Leo Alexander, a principal author of the Nuremberg Code, the Eye Begins to See delivers a compelling story of historical insight and psychological intrigue. In 1946 Leo Alexander, Viennese psychiatrist and Jewish refugee, returns to Europe to serve as chief medical counsel for the American prosecution at the Nuremberg Doctors’ Trial. There he confronts Karl Brandt, Hitler’s chief physician, who has been accused of medical war crimes. Alexander’s attempt to understand the psychology of Brandt, and the other Nazi doctors on the docket, shakes him to the core, forcing him to question everything he knows about his scientific principles, ethics, and personal identity. Ultimately he recognizes the need for a universally accepted code of medical ethics in human subject research, leading him to become an author of the Nuremberg Code.”
Lauren Small is a writer and novelist with a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature. She holds an appointment as an adjunct assistant professor in pediatrics in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where she co-teaches an elective in narrative medicine for pediatric residents. She has published four novels of historical fiction, along with short stories, profiles, articles, and essays. She has a strong interest in social justice and the history of psychiatry. Her new novel, The Tale of Radegonde: a novel of the First Crusade, is forthcoming in 2025 from BrickHouse Books.
