On the Move: A Life
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A “wonderful memoir” (Los Angeles Times) about a brilliantly unconventional physician and writer, a man who has illuminated the many ways that the brain makes us human. • “Intimate.... Brim[s] with life and affection.” —The New York Times
When Oliver Sacks was twelve years old, a perceptive schoolmaster wrote: “Sacks will go far, if he does not go too far.” It is now abundantly clear that Sacks has never stopped going. With unbridled honesty and humor, Sacks writes about the passions that have driven his life—from motorcycles and weight lifting to neurology and poetry. He writes about his love affairs, both romantic and intellectual; his guilt over leaving his family to come to America; his bond with his schizophrenic brother; and the writers and scientists—W. H. Auden, Gerald M. Edelman, Francis Crick—who have influenced his work.
When Oliver Sacks was twelve years old, a perceptive schoolmaster wrote: “Sacks will go far, if he does not go too far.” It is now abundantly clear that Sacks has never stopped going. With unbridled honesty and humor, Sacks writes about the passions that have driven his life—from motorcycles and weight lifting to neurology and poetry. He writes about his love affairs, both romantic and intellectual; his guilt over leaving his family to come to America; his bond with his schizophrenic brother; and the writers and scientists—W. H. Auden, Gerald M. Edelman, Francis Crick—who have influenced his work.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
thenextgoodbook.com
On the Move by Oliver Sacks
384 pages
What’s it about?
Oliver Sacks, a well known neurologist and writer, describes the ups and downs of his career and personal life in this memoir. Sacks makes the case that ill patients are more than a collection of symptoms. Patients have a history and a story that play into the specific illness they are fighting.
What did I think?
I found Dr. Sacks and his life very interesting. He would be a fascinating person to have dinner with. Dr. Sacks is not only interested in the science of his patient’s illness, but in the patient’s story as well.
Should you read it?
I enjoyed this book, but warn you it does skip around and cover quite a range of topics. I found the man and the science interesting but at times the book tells more than I wanted to know, and at times it assumes I know more than I do.
Quote-
“Individuality is deeply imbued in us from the very start, at the neuronal level. . . . We are destined, whether we wish it or not, to a life of particularity and self-development, to make our own individual paths through life.”
Question-
Is Sacks a physician who writes or a writer who practices medicine?
If you like this try-
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
On the Move by Oliver Sacks
384 pages
What’s it about?
Oliver Sacks, a well known neurologist and writer, describes the ups and downs of his career and personal life in this memoir. Sacks makes the case that ill patients are more than a collection of symptoms. Patients have a history and a story that play into the specific illness they are fighting.
What did I think?
I found Dr. Sacks and his life very interesting. He would be a fascinating person to have dinner with. Dr. Sacks is not only interested in the science of his patient’s illness, but in the patient’s story as well.
Should you read it?
I enjoyed this book, but warn you it does skip around and cover quite a range of topics. I found the man and the science interesting but at times the book tells more than I wanted to know, and at times it assumes I know more than I do.
Quote-
“Individuality is deeply imbued in us from the very start, at the neuronal level. . . . We are destined, whether we wish it or not, to a life of particularity and self-development, to make our own individual paths through life.”
Question-
Is Sacks a physician who writes or a writer who practices medicine?
If you like this try-
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
The life detailed in this memoir is an example of brilliance and beauty in every conceivable way. I have long enjoyed Oliver Sacks’ writing which is capable of transplanting you firmly into the experience of one of his patients. I had no idea that his own life would prove to be so transfixing and exemplary of how life should be lived. A life that as a fan of his, I am ashamed to have known nothing about until picking this book up.
Sacks still takes great pains to acknowledge the privilege that afforded him such a broadness of opportunity. All the while leaving room for his natural curiosity and courage to shine through in the nuanced moments of a vast life. A forward looking perspective that contrasts the often backwards social attitudes of the medical field at his time. Perhaps even today that empathetic lens is left wanting in most professionals.
What stood out most for me was his reflectiveness; a trait that many people lack. It’s this 360 perspective that he maintains that distinguishes his writing a point which he acknowledges he was coached on by many friends. His method has become avoid simply being technical and to find the lyrical grace and fluidity that few can surpass or imitate.
I especially enjoyed the parts where he focused on his scientific life, but it was interesting to see how his personal and professional life intermingled. He faced a lot of difficulties both personally and professionally and it seems like he didn't overcome these difficulties so much as he was just able to keep going which is inspirational to those of us who aren't skilled at "overcoming."
At times though the narrative dissolved into a list of interesting people he met or things that happened to him one afternoon, and I found that both boring and disappointing for the overall structure of the book. It's worth reading, particularly if you're a fan of neuroscience or Sacks personally (both of which I am).
PS. Sacks can easily convince a reader to never ever try PCP. Holy cow!
At times though the narrative dissolved into a list of interesting people he met or things that happened to him one afternoon, and I found that both boring and disappointing for the overall structure of the book. It's worth reading, particularly if you're a fan of neuroscience or Sacks personally (both of which I am).
PS. Sacks can easily convince a reader to never ever try PCP. Holy cow!
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.