Into the Silent Land

A finalist for The Guardian First Book Award, Into the Silent Land is a stunning look into how the human brain constructs a "self," or the essence of who we are as individuals. A neuropsychologist with twenty-five years' experience and a runner-up for the prestigious Wellcome Trust Science Prize, Paul Broks writes with a doctor's precision and clarity in a series of narratives about the fascinating world of the neurologically impaired, delving not only into the inner lives of his patients, but into a deeper understanding of how we define who we are. Fusing classic cases of neuropsychology with the author's own case studies, personal vignettes, philosophical debate, and thought-provoking riffs and meditations on the nature of neurological impairments and dysfunctions, Into the Silent Land is an illuminating study of neuroscience, and an extraordinary look into the unknown world of the self.

A neuropsychologist and a runner-up for the prestigious Wellcome Trust Science Prize, Broks writes with a doctor's precision and clarity in a series of narratives about the fascinating world of the neurologically impaired, delving not only into the inner lives of his patients but also into a deeper understanding of how they define who they are.