There seems to be little doubt that Sacks drew out special abilities in many different fields that others had overlooked owing to pigeon-holing the subjects, often in the light of their tested IQs. Some are really extraordinary, such as the identical twins suffering from autism, who have an astonishing ability to see numbers, often of numerous digits, provided that they are prime numbers.
We are introduced to a wide range of neurological conditions: tilting bodies, aphasia, Parkinson’s, Tourette’s syndrome, autism and others.
Beneath the surface there is the irritant of Sacks’ egocentricity. What we have is a seemingly random series of accounts of patients, who had failed with other medical professionals, but who succeeded insofar as it was possible with him. It seems to me to rather titivate the lay reader, while blinding him/her with science at the same time. I wonder what group of people, Sacks had in mind as potential readers. Recently, I read Janov’s “Why You Get Sick and How You Get Well”, a totally compelling and invigorating read, demanding at times but so lucidly written. In view of its extraordinary subject matter, it should be a riveting read, yet I find it rather dull. I have been trying to understand why I find this much-celebrated book vaguely unsatisfying.
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