Ten of the best good doctors in literature

In 2010, for the Guardian, John Mullan named ten of the best good doctors in literature.

One doctor on the list:

Dr Stephen Maturin

In the Napoleonic nautical yarns of Patrick O'Brian, Maturin is right-hand man to Captain Jack Aubrey. As well as being the ship's surgeon, Maturin is a part-time spy and a famous naturalist. Fluent in a dozen languages, he is something of a bohemian: a former opium addict and an accomplished cellist and flautist. Sometimes he has time to cure people.

Read about the other doctors on the list.

The Aubrey/Maturin Series appears on Andrew Taylor's top five list of historical novels, Jeff Somers's lists of five great books that will expand your vocabulary and top five books and series for old-fashioned adventure in the 19th century, the Telegraph's list of the ten best historical novels, Bella Bathurst's top ten list of books on the sea. Master & Commander is one of Peter Mayle's six best books. .

Also see Mullan's list of ten of the best bad doctors in fiction.

--Marshal Zeringue