sfletcher26's review against another edition
5.0
It's with tears in my eyes that I turn the last page on this book.
Oliver Sacks was for me the benchmark; the medical and scientific writer by which all others were judged and largely found wanting.
I remember watching a series of programmes he made for UK television when I was a teenager and being amazed by the vastness of his knowledge, his enthusiasm and his humanity. A few years later having watched and read Awakenings his writing became a permanent fixture in my reading. As each new book came out it instantly went to the top of my 'to read list'. This though will be his last new book and what a book it was.
Sometimes these kind of books, collections of essays and monographs can be a little hit and miss, they tend to collate things the writer never intended to go into a book as they don't fit or weren't right. This though is a gem. Every article has been thought about and curated perfectly to show the breadth of Sacks' work and interests. If I'm honest this isn't his best book (nothing could top either Awakenings or On The Move) but as it's his last it gets *****.
Beautiful from cover to cover.
Oliver Sacks was for me the benchmark; the medical and scientific writer by which all others were judged and largely found wanting.
I remember watching a series of programmes he made for UK television when I was a teenager and being amazed by the vastness of his knowledge, his enthusiasm and his humanity. A few years later having watched and read Awakenings his writing became a permanent fixture in my reading. As each new book came out it instantly went to the top of my 'to read list'. This though will be his last new book and what a book it was.
Sometimes these kind of books, collections of essays and monographs can be a little hit and miss, they tend to collate things the writer never intended to go into a book as they don't fit or weren't right. This though is a gem. Every article has been thought about and curated perfectly to show the breadth of Sacks' work and interests. If I'm honest this isn't his best book (nothing could top either Awakenings or On The Move) but as it's his last it gets *****.
Beautiful from cover to cover.
blasterbee's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
4.0
laerun's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
leviathanxxx13's review against another edition
I wanted to read this book since I was stunned by The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat. Indeed, I expected it to once again leave me in awe. Nevertheless, it turned out to be a chaotic compilation getting nowhere near astonishment nor luminosity. I quite didn’t understand what the author’s meant by mixing those stories that have nothing to do with each other into this book. To be fair, there were prominent anecdotes, but overall, I was exhaustedly dragging myself page after page wishing the book to end without putting it down in an attempt to preserve my respect towards Dr.Sacks