If you loved K-Pax as I did please don't think you will automatically love this book. I know I am not.


A review from a layperson's perspective   December 23, 2005
 26 out of 32 found this review helpful

This book has been recommended to me by so many people, (and even when I bought it it was still on Waterstone's "Staff Choice" list), so I guess there was always the chance that it wouln't meet my expectations, these having been made so high by others. Plus the fact that, though having studied education and at a lesser level psychology, I'm hardly a neurologist; so there is always the chance that there's something I'm missing.
However the first thing that struck me about the book - published in 1984 I think - is the archaic language. Whilst this may have been deliberate, (and purely technical), for the modern reader aquainted with the sensitivities of the "special needs" era it is somewhat of a shock. Dr Sack's patients are described by him frequently and variably as "simpletons" "idiots" "fools" and "morons". I am assuming that there is of course a technical meaning behind these words in the neurological field, but as "Hat" is read nowadays by so many modern readers from the social sciences as well as medical ones, it seems archaic and inappropriate.

Sacks also admits to being unable to "cure" most of his "idiot" patients, and whilst that kind of honesty is refreshing from a scientist, it also made me feel that I was reading simply for 'voyeuristic' reasons (this book was never on my course list, like other reviewers have mentioned); that I wasn't going to learn any answers, just have a look at some interesting people.

That said, towards the end of the book I learned more about Sacks' views on his patients and how he at the time must have been a trailblazer in his field in terms of attitudes. Encouraging his patients to explore their own worlds through art, music and drama undoubtedly inspired the modern "art therapy" movements.His willingness to explore new avenues in terms of patients, and his ability to believe what they said rather than treating them as lunatics (despite his use of language) showed an empathy still not shown by some medical practitioners even today.

And readers will share his sadness when his "twins" patients get split up and their secret language is lost forever, and various other incidents in which we feel his frustration.

In summary then, all in all a good read for a layperson; while some of the technical (neurological) terminology is complex, it is not overwhelming. Some of the language is out-dated and archaic, and may be difficult for the modern 'politically correct' person to digest. While most of the cases studied are from the 1950s-1970s it still has lessons for today, and also shows where some of our modern practises must have originated.


A brilliant introduction to the brain   September 15, 2005
 18 out of 20 found this review helpful

I am an A level student who wants to study neuroscience at university. I read this book last year and found it to be an excellent introduction to the brain and what happens when it 'goes wrong'. Oliver Sacks has a way of making each case study a human story rather than an analysis of his patients. His science is accessible and I would recommend anyone to read this book whether studying the brain or not.


Excellent. Great for the uninitiated neurologist   May 20, 2004
 28 out of 33 found this review helpful

This book was everything I had hoped it would be. Interesting, entertaining, even funny in parts. It basically follows several case study's into unusual neurological disorders. Each chapter covers a different patient, and each one is as interesting as the last.
The book brought to light the amazing fact that we are controlled by a series of electrical impulses, in different locations of the brain, fired off by various external stimuli and at the same time effecting our every action and reaction to our environment, and that at any time that control system can go wrong causing incredible and sometimes amusing results.
To read this book is to be enlightened and introduced to the fringes of the amazing world of neurology.