” Early studies of the human brain used a simple method: wait for misfortune to strike–strokes, seizures, infectious diseases, horrendous accidents–and see how victims coped. In many cases their survival was miraculous, if puzzling. Observers were amazed by the transformations that took place when different parts of the brain were destroyed, altering victims’ personalities. Parents suddenly couldn’t recognize their own children. Pillars of the community became pathological liars. Some people couldn’t speak but could still sing. Sam Kean explains the brain’s secret passageways and recounts forgotten tales of the ordinary people whose struggles, resilience, and deep humanity made modern neuroscience possible.”

So this book took me almost an entire year to read and you might be thinking, well then I clearly didn’t like it, but that wasn’t the case at all. In truth, I am so used to reading fiction, that reading nonfiction was very refreshing, but it was time consuming. The material in the book was dense, but fascinating. I always wanted people to comment on the book when I was out and about with it, so that I could tell them whatever fascinating story Kean was explaining at the time.

I have recommended this book to many people throughout my year of reading it and I wanted to recommend it here as well. This book might take a while to get through if you are used to quick fiction stories like I am, but if you have any interest at all in understanding the brain, this is a perfect book to read. I didn’t even know I wanted to know about the brain until I started reading this book and then I was hooked. I wanted to know about the crazy experiments that have been done and gain a better understanding of how the different areas of the brain work. You never know when the information from this book will help you understand what is happening with a friend or loved one.

If this sounds like something you want to try out, check out The tale of the dueling neurosurgeons from our shelves today.