Doctors, Erich Segal's enlightening work of fiction is both a love story and an eye-opening study of the training and practice of American health professionals. The author has crafted a powerful and moving account of the 1962 batch of Harvard medical school. We experience the trials and tribulations that doctors go through, to be what they are. Demanding hours of internship, facing and overcoming their worst fears and the many hours of rigorous research and residency are portrayed. In the narrative it is clear that doctors are as flawed as other people but due to the nature of their work they are elevated to a demi-God status. The book leads us through the various incidences that the med school graduates encounter which transform them into the doctors they eventually become. Writing with all the passion of Love Story and power of The Class, Erich Segal's stunning novel reveals the making of doctors-what makes them tick, scheme, hurt and love. From the crucible of medical school's merciless training through the demanding hours of internship to the triumphs, Doctors makes a journey out of it all. Doctors brings to vivid life the men and women who seek to heal but who must first walk through fire. At the novel's heart is the unforgettable relationship of Barney Livingston and Laura Castellano, childhood friends who separately find unsettling and unsatisfying love until their friendship ripens into passion. Yet even with their devotion to each other, even their medical gifts may not be enough to save the one life they treasure above all others. Doctors is heartbreaking, witty, inspiring and an utterly gripping real portrait of life. The book was published in 1989 and is available in paperback.