The Paediatrician A Pioneer in the Garden of Eden

“If there had been a doctor in Mosul, your baby brother would not have died.” With these words from his grieving mother Abdulla’s dream to become the first doctor in his hometown Mosul in northern Iraq was born, a dream that became the inspiration behind the life-long mission that lies at the core of The Paediatrician, an exciting and compelling true story written by a daughter-in law who knew him intimately.Dr Abdulla Kassir had to face numerous obstacles. In the early 20th century a Christian boy in an Arab Territory ruled by the Ottoman Empire had not only to submit to discriminatory laws and restrictions imposed on his religious minority, he also had to travel for weeks by caravan to a high-school in Turkey and to a university in Beirut, which meant years of separation from his beloved family.But he persevered though, while a student, he was arrested by the Turkish police for spying for Russia and was later drafted into the Turkish army during the First World War, where he experienced the horror of the battle of Kars and the massacre of the Armenians.When he finally returned home as a doctor the British army had occupied his homeland and redrawn the map of the Arab World. But he concentrated on his profession, fighting with every means available to him not only against disease but also against widespread ignorance, superstition and prejudice.His heart went out to the suffering of children. At the age of 47 years he trained in London in paediatrics and returned with a new dream: to establish the first children’s hospital in Baghdad. When he finally retired, he won a seat in parliament where he resumed his mission by pushing for legislation for improved medical and social security for the people.During his long life Dr Abdulla Kassir witnessed his country moving out of the Middle Ages and into Modern Times, from the occupation of the Ottoman Empire to the Kingdom of Iraq under the British mandate, then to the Republic of Iraq and finally to the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein.The women in his life too took a leap into the modern era. For his mother reading and writing was a book with seven seals. His wife broke them open, and his daughters embraced its values in universities and professions.Written in an engaging narrative non-fiction style, this biography reads like a fast-paced novel. Maria Kassir, who has several well-received books already published, spent four observant decades in Baghdad. She uses her deep insight into the changing feelings, traditions and habits of the people of Iraq to underpin her story as the country moved from the Middle Ages into the 20th Century.