"Absorbing...Dr. Sacks provides what he calls a kind of 'natural history or anthology of hallucinations' drawn from his patients' experiences, his own observations and from literature on the subject...Sacks conjures these apparitions in language that has an easy, tactile magic. As he's done in so many of his earlier books, like "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat" and" An Anthropologist on Mars," he uses his medical knowledge to illuminate the complexities of the human brain and the mysteries of the human mind. At the same time, his compassion for his patients and his own philosophical outlook turn what might have been clinical case studies into humanely written short stories, animated as much by an intuitive appreciation of the human condition as by scientific understanding." -Michiko Kakutani, "The New York Times "
"Effective--largely because Sacks never turns exploitative, instead sketching out each illness with compassion and thoughtful prose. A riveting look inside the human brain and its quirks." -Kirkus
"Fascinating...Writing with his trademark mix of evocative description, probing curiosity, and warm empathy, Sacks once again draws back the curtain on the mind's improbable workings." -"Publishers Weekly"
"Sacks' best-selling nonfiction stories based on his practice of clinical neurology constitute one shining reason for thinking that we're living in a golden age of medical writing...Sacks defines the best of medical writing." -"Booklist"
"Another gem of a book...With a fine sense of narrative, Sacks deftly integrates literature, art, and medical history around his very human, often riveting, case histories. This book is recommended for all readers, not just those with symptoms! This is a model of humane science made compellingly readable." -"Library Journal," starred review
"This doctor cares deeply about his patients' experiences--about their lives, not just about their diseases. Through his accounts we can imagin

OLIVER SACKS is a professor of neurology and psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center and the author of many books, including "Musicophilia, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, "and" Awakenings" (which inspired the Oscar-nominated film).