Book Club - February
In a college course, a professor read excerpts from Oliver Sacks' The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat. After class, I sought the book out for myself, and was mesmerized by the case studies he shared. It also helps that Sacks is such a storyteller - it doesn't feel clinical when he talks about these medical issues. I was already interested in the brain and cognition through my psychology courses, but Sacks really influenced my interest in brain injuries and neurological disorders.
From there I wanted to read all his works - to date, I've read Musicophilia, Hallucinations, and Awakenings. I've read portions of The Mind's Eye, so that's technically on my list still.
This month, I intend to start An Anthropologist on Mars.
I know one of the essays is about Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who designed humane livestock facilities, inspired by a "hug machine" she had built for herself. The effect is that deep pressure is calming to hypersensitive people, and to animals.
Even though I know this, I still expect to learn more about her from Sacks' essay.
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