Following the death of my husband Brian, the task of editing the memoir that he had asked me to complete has been a bittersweet experience. His book has now been published under the title A Psychiatrist’s Journey and is available in ebook or print versions from many online retailers: https://books2read.com/u/4NzOJN.

A long detailed account of Brian’s varied and productive life, it’s not intended for a wide commercial market but should appeal to people with an interest in the history of medicine and psychiatry, those who grew up in 1930s Auckland, and those who knew him personally. Taking over this project, which was so important to Brian, has been a big responsibility and I hope I’ve done it justice.

I left the wording almost exactly unchanged, resisting any temptation to add things in or take things out, except where clarification was needed or information was repeated. My main change involved reorganising the document into shorter sections, adding headings to make it easier to read and to navigate. It needed many minor copy edits such as standardising the use of capital letters and the format of abbreviations. I made some use of tools like “search and replace”, but they can introduce errors and anyway it was a labour of love which I preferred to do myself by hand. I did employ help with the layout and illustrations from a colleague who has worked with me on previous books. I didn’t use AI.

A short blurb:

“A candid memoir by Brian Barraclough (1933-2025), best known for his research on psychiatric and social aspects of suicide. His book covers growing up in New Zealand, having tuberculosis aged 17, training as a doctor at the University of Otago, practising general medicine in Christchurch and psychiatry in Dunedin before sailing to England as a ship’s surgeon. He worked at the Maudsley Hospital in London, the Medical Research Council unit in Chichester, and the University of Southampton before retiring back to Auckland. His book describes many memorable patients and colleagues and his wide leisure interests including art, European travel, and medical history.” 

Here again is the link where you can read a preview: https://books2read.com/u/4NzOJN.