Abby Caplin’s “A Doctor Only Pretends” is a much celebrated book of wit and tenderness, humor and heartache. Both a physician and a patient, Dr. Caplin mines from her medical training, as well as her own experiences with health challenges, to bring us moments from her experiences that are both unique and universal. Her intelligence and skill lend grace to poems that ask us to laugh about and sometimes grieve the human condition. Poet Matthew Lippman writes, “A Doctor Only Pretends is grounded in a voice that sings. It’s lyrical in its sonic quality, and it bellows the backbeat of the heart. We want to live when we read and hear these poems…”