The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat：And Other Clinical Tales

Inhismostextraordinarybook,oneofthegreatclinicalwritersofthe20thcentury(TheNewYorkTimes)recountsthecasehistoriesofpatientslostinthebizarre,apparentlyinescapableworldofneurologicaldisorders.OliverSacks'sTheManWhoMistookHisWifeforaHattellsthestoriesofindividualsafflictedwithfantasticperceptualandintellectualaberrations:patientswhohavelosttheirmemoriesandwiththemthegreaterpartoftheirpasts;whoarenolongerabletorecognizepeopleandcommonobjects;whoarestrickenwithviolentticsandgrimacesorwhoshoutinvoluntaryobscenities;whoselimbshavebecomealien;whohavebeendismissedasretardedyetaregiftedwithuncannyartisticormathematicaltalents.Ifinconceivablystrange,thesebrillianttalesremain,inDr.Sacks'ssplendidandsympathetictelling,deeplyhuman.Theyarestudiesoflifestrugglingagainstincredibleadversity,andtheyenableustoentertheworldoftheneurologicallyimpaired,toimaginewithourheartswhatitmustbetoliveandfeelastheydo.Agreathealer,Sacksneverlosessightofmedicine'sultimateresponsibility:thesuffering,afflicted,fightinghumansubject.