Publisher's Synopsis
A taxi driver with a screwdriver lodged in the memory centre of his brain has his entire identity re-constructed.
A patient with a complex aphasia that makes him sound like a dog when he speaks but does not realise it.
A maths professor whose stroke has ruined everything apart from her giant mind.
Drawing on his work as clinical neuropsychologist and his experiences in the wake of his own descent into madness, A K Benjamin takes us on profound enquiry into the meaning of healing, recovery and the clinical relationship. Drifting from place to place - North East India, Barcelona, California, Chile, Berlin, the Amazon - his own experiments with therapy are entwined with recollections of his patients: from ayuhuasca retreats to pet therapy, from couples counselling to severe diets and meditation. As he peels back the layers of his self, we arrive at an ingenious and shocking confrontation with the truth that lies beneath his disguised identity.
