Adam Kay Books

Adam Kay is a British author, comedian, former doctor and screenwriter who shot to fame for his bestselling book This Is Going To Hurt.

Adam went to Dulwich College before studying medicine at Imperial College, London. This was where he first began performing as a comedian whilst he was still studying medicine and formed a musical comedy group called Amateur Transplants. Following this he worked as a gynaecologist and obstetrician before he finally decided to retire as a doctor and write his debut novel. 

Drawing from his experience as a NHS doctor, Kay wrote This Is Going To Hurt as a hilarious take on the plight of NHS doctors. As a doctor himself; Kay gives the readers a detailed insight into his experience with the NHS. This makes for some exceptional and entertaining reading material. 

The book is written in an accessible, episodic, and engaging way to give a real picture of what some doctors go through in their profession. The book is narrated through diary entries of Adam Kay’s experience as he ascends from a junior doctor to being a consultant. He specialises in gynaecology and has both funny and sad stories to tell. Kay shares how he decided to quit the job as a doctor because of an incident that changed his life. He reveals how he has discovered that those in the profession want to come out because of how they are treated. Kay reveals how the doctors are expected to work extra hours without any compensation for the extra work. Which in turn impacts their mental health and lives. As Kay shares the plight of NHS doctors with his readers; in doing so he makes the world empathise with his fellow doctors.

Even though the book focuses on British health systems, some of their flaws cut across many medical systems in many countries. The author uses humour when detailing the nuances of working in healthcare. Which makes the heart-wrenching realities of these stories bearable, even engaging to the reader.

Kay's second book, Twas the Night Shift before Christmas, also went on to become the number one Sunday Times bestseller, selling millions of copies. In this classic, Adam Kay delves back into his diaries for a hilarious, horrifying and sometimes heartbreaking peek behind the blue curtain at Christmas time. This is a love letter to all those who spend their festive season on the front line, removing babies and baubles from the various places they get stuck, at the most wonderful time of the year. 

Yet another bestseller; Adam Kay’s new book about the NHS; Undoctored is also a major success. It is a hilarious, heartbreaking and humbling account of a doctor’s experience. Undoctored is about what happens when a doctor hangs up his scrubs, but medicine refuses to let go of him. Yet again, the book is a heartbreaking story told in a humorous fashion.

Undoctored is about an extraordinary medical school education but it is also about opening old wounds and examining the present-day scars, about hospital admissions and personal ones. Adam Kay's Undoctored is a rollercoaster of drastic feelings—there are bits that will have you in tears and there are parts that will have you in splits. An astonishing portrait of a life in and out of medicine, from one of Britain's finest storytellers. 

These three of Adam Kay’s books may be centred around the hospital and doctor’s experiences but they make great reading material for everyone. Anyone that has ever been to a hospital or been sick and everyone that works within the NHS; will find Adam Kay’s accounts touching. Whilst Kay’s ability to narrate real experiences and stories using humour makes his books engrossing reads for readers across ages.

That said, Adam Kay’s children’s books—Kay’s Anatomy and Kay’s Marvellous Medicine are both in a league of their own.

Kay's Marvellous Medicine for children aged 9+  is a fun, absurd and wild exploration of Ancient Egypt. The book answers questions like why Ancient Egyptians thought the brain was just a useless load of old stuffing that might as well be chucked in the bin, why teachers forced their pupils to smoke cigarettes, why hairdressers would cut off their customers' legs, and why people used to get paid for farting. A gross, gruesome but highly entertaining look at the human body and its functions; this book is guaranteed to inspire the next generation of medics.

Kay’s Anatomy for the same age group of children is also a discovery of all the weird and wonderful things that go on inside our body. The book covers key stage 2 / 3 human biology syllabus in a slightly repulsive, hilarious but fascinating way. Funny and informative; this is another Adam Kay book that every aspiring little doctor must read.