lucrazy's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.75
I usually love Oliver Sacks' books, however, this one was just too packed with clinical cases, to the point where I would sometimes forget what condition he was even talking about.
galliexyc's review against another edition
4.0
Exhaustive exploration of the complexities surrounding hallucinations that nonetheless energizes the reader, not enervates them! Required reading for the curious-minded!
ari_reading_'s review against another edition
3.0
3.5
This was a fascinating and interesting book, albeit, sometimes disturbing.
This was a fascinating and interesting book, albeit, sometimes disturbing.
erinray82's review against another edition
5.0
Really interesting book. An account of various forms of hallucinations from delirium to self-induced altered states. It not only reports on visual forms, but also delves into auditory hallucinations and phantom smells. It felt very complete and covered many common misconceptions about the variety of hallucinations. Not deeply scientific as to the specifics of how and why these things occur, but a relatively complete account of experiences nonetheless. He shares his findings with enough of an explanation that I felt both informed and consistently entertained, while not having to be a schooled in neuroscience to understand him. It gave a sound history and clarification of various hallucinatory occurrences without overwhelming me with jargon. Oliver Sacks has a way of writing in a way that feels very conversational, but doesn't underestimate his reader either. I really enjoyed this book.
chickachoy's review against another edition
Full of insightful and well written information but felt a bit repetitive. Very detail oriented and covers the (IMO minute) differences between different kinds of sensory impairments and the subsequent hallucinations that can follow - doesn't even talk about the cool kinds of hallucinations like from drugs or schizophrenia.