The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat

In The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales, neurologist Oliver Sacks describes some of the more noteworthy cases that he’s encountered, some of which are intriguing. For example, patients with aphasia, who cannot understand words, thought a speech by then-President Ronald Reagan was hilarious. In contrast, a patient with tonal agnosia, who understood words but not speaking tones, timbre, etc., complained that Reagan was not cogent.

However, the book’s writing style is a bit too erudite for my taste, referring to neurologists I’d never heard of and philosophers I’m not familiar with. As a result, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat is less appealing than other books I’ve read about psychology and mental functioning.