Shop now Learn more Shop now Shop Mid Season Savings Cloud Drive Photos Shop now Shop Amazon Fire Phone Shop Amazon Fire TV Shop now Halloween Garden Decor xmen xmen xmen Shop Fire HD 6 Shop Kindle Voyage Pre-order now Shop now Shop now
Hallucinations and over 2 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more

Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Buy Used
Used - Very Good See details
Price: £4.95

or
 
   
Trade in Yours
For a £0.25 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Colour:
Image not available

 
Start reading Hallucinations on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Hallucinations [Paperback]

Oliver Sacks
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (101 customer reviews)
RRP: £9.99
Price: £7.99 & FREE Delivery in the UK on orders over £10. Details
You Save: £2.00 (20%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.
Want it tomorrow, 21 Oct.? Details
Trade In this Item for up to £0.25
Trade in Hallucinations for an Amazon Gift Card of up to £0.25, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Learn more

Book Description

29 Aug 2013

Have you ever seen something that wasn’t really there? Heard someone call your name in an empty house? Sensed someone following you and turned around to find nothing?

Hallucinations don’t belong wholly to the insane. Much more commonly, they are linked to sensory deprivation, intoxication, illness, or injury. In some conditions, hallucinations can lead to religious epiphanies or even the feeling of leaving one’s own body. Humans have always sought such life-changing visions, and for thousands of years have used hallucinogenic compounds to achieve them.

In this book, with his usual elegance, curiosity, and compassion, Dr Sacks weaves together stories of his patients and of his own mind-altering experiences to illuminate what hallucinations tell us about the organization and structure of our brains, how they have influenced every culture’s folklore and art, and why the potential for hallucination is present in us all, a vital part of the human condition.


Special Offers and Product Promotions

  • Between 20-26 October 2014, spend £10 in a single order on item(s) dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk and receive a £2 promotional code to spend in the Amazon Appstore. Here's how (terms and conditions apply)

Frequently Bought Together

Hallucinations + The Mind's Eye + The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
Price For All Three: £22.47

Buy the selected items together

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought


Product details

  • Paperback: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Picador (29 Aug 2013)
  • Language: Unknown
  • ISBN-10: 1447208269
  • ISBN-13: 978-1447208266
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 2.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (101 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 10,796 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  •  Would you like to update product info, give feedback on images, or tell us about a lower price?


Product Description

Review

‘Oliver Sacks is a neurologist, a man of humane eloquence, and a genuine communicator’ Observer

‘Sacks writes, basically, adventure stories, accounts of voyages into the unexplained territory of the brain. In doing so, he reveals a landscape far more complex and strange than anything we could infer from our daily interactions’ Sunday Times

‘Sacks is above all a clinician, and writes with compassion and clarity . . . The result is a sort of humane discourse on the fragility of our minds, of the bodies that give rise to them, and of the world they create for us’ Daily Telegraph

‘In measured prose with a blessed lack of jargon, Sacks explores the ingenuity with which individuals cope with bizarre neurological conditions . . . humane, empathic, he is the doctor you would want’ Independent

‘Oliver Sacks has become the world’s best-known neurologist. His case studies of broken minds offer brilliant insight into the mysteries of consciousness’ Guardian

'Sacks is at his most engaging when he brings the ostensibly strange into the realm of normality . . . This is where Sacks triumphs. Not just in the clarity with which he teaches us about the obscure phenomology of the human brain, but in the light his writings casts on even our most ordinary experiences.' Daily Telegraph

‘The king of pop-neurology reveals how almost all of us have hallucinations’ GQ

‘It’s a feat to bring any specialty in medicine vividly to life, and to do so without relinquishing the sensitivity and empathy that characterise the best doctors is something that few achieve. Oliver Sacks has managed it throughout his career . . . Affable, affectionate, respectful and smart, Sacks could be the David Attenborough of the human mind.’ Independent on Sunday

'An enthralling, often guiltily comic insight into the pecularities the brain can conjure.' Irish Examiner

'Oliver Sacks is a graceful, lucid and elegant prose stylist. Though perhaps above all, he is the witty, warm, humble and deeply compassionate explorer of how our brains influence our world . . . fascinating.' Lady

'Hallucinations is an absorbing study of an exotic subject . . . Hallucinatory literature is either transgressive or presented as a search for enlightenment. This new volume sits elegantly between the two extremes and is more rewarding than either - a continuing investigation into what makes us human.' Literary Review

'The greatest living ethnographer of those fascinating tribes qho live on the outer and still largely unchartered shores of the land of Mind-and-Brain.' Observer

'A very human insight into what happens when our brains go awry.' Psychologies

'Sacks writes in the the great tradition of literary doctors. He is humane, relaxed and amused, and loved a good anecdote.' Spectator

'Startling and intriguing' Sunday Times

‘No more enlightening science book has appeared this year . . . Miss this at your peril.’ Sunday Times Science Book of the Year

'A superb synthesis of the literature on these arresting, disturbing and sometimes terrifying phenomena, and a profound work of humanity.' TLS

'Fascinating' (The Times)

‘Wide-ranging, compassionate and ultimately revelatory . . . Hallucinations is the keystone of the amazing edifice that is this remarkable thinker’s oeuvre.’ Will Self, Guardian

Sacks's trip through the world of hallucinations - and his own LSD experiences - explains some of the mesmerising ways our brains can deceive us (Best Books of 2013 Sunday Times)

About the Author

Oliver Sacks is a physician and the author of many books, including The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Awakenings (which inspired the Oscar-nominated film) and Musicophilia. Born in London and educated at Oxford, he now lives in New York City, where he is Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry at Columbia University. He is the first, and only, Columbia University Artist, and is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. In 2008, he was appointed Commander of the British Empire.

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index
Search inside this book:

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
28 of 28 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Further brilliance from the master neurologist 1 Nov 2012
By Amazon Customer VINE VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Vine Customer Review of Free Product (What's this?)
If you have read anything from Oliver Sacks before you will be familiar with his engaging and informative writing style; he just grabs you and takes you on a journey that seems simple at first but as you look back across the traverse there is a strong sense of how good a teacher he must be. In the current title he performs no less a feat, taking us as he does through an exploration of hallucinations. This is a fascinating subject of which I have something more than a passing acquaintence, mostly from my past career as a psychiatric nurse. Having some knowledge might be detrimental to making an honest evaluation of the book, but I have hopefully managed this and can honestly say that this book will go a long way to informing anyone who has even a passing interest in the subject to gain a fascinating insight to its history and the experiences of those people who have first hand experience of hallucinations.
In my opinion one of the sengths that Oliver Sacks has in abundance is the ability to dispel fear; it is understandable that most people fear the idea of most forms of mental disorder, but through sharing information about the subject under cosideration Sacks helps to cure the most damaging effect of mental disorder, ignorance.
Was this review helpful to you?
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Yet more amazing tales of inner space 18 Nov 2012
By Bob Sherunkle TOP 1000 REVIEWER VINE VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Vine Customer Review of Free Product (What's this?)
Alan Bennett once commented, probably thinking of the sad experiences of his mother and aunt, that common mental problems don't attract much interest, and that you get more attention if you do something bizarre like mistaking your wife for a hat. This might be a fair criticism of some of Sacks' earlier books, but I have to suspend judgment, as it's some time since I read the book in question.

In Hallucinations, Sacks casts his net far and wide. Some of the types of hallucination he describes are rare and exotic , e.g. Charles Bonnet syndrome in which people who were once sighted but are now blind experience vivid visual hallucinatuions. Others, however, are associated with well-known conditions, such as migraine or Parkinson's, and there is even a chapter on hallucinations which any of us could experience ("On the threshold of sleep"). We tend to think of hallucinations as visual, but Sacks covers the other senses too; for example, with hearing he covers tinnitus and then moves on to more obscure conditions.

Sacks is able to draw on his own personal experiences in two of the topics he covers. One is migraine, as he has suffered from this. The other is use of hallucinogenic drugs. He describes, with remarkable candour, how in the mid 1960s, during the postgraduate phase of his career, he would "spend the whole weekend so high that images and thoughts would become rather like controllable hallucinations." His motivation was a mixture of scientific research and opening "the doors of perception". [It must have been a tough job, but someone had to do it ...] An older psychoanalyst friend suggested to him that this behaviour "surely testified to some intense inner needs or conflicts", and this led Sacks to see a therapist.
Read more ›
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Hallucinations 24 Mar 2013
By Damaskcat HALL OF FAME TOP 50 REVIEWER VINE VOICE
Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
The human brain works in ways we are only just beginning to understand. We tend to trust what we see as being what is actually happening but this book shows how the brain can be fooled into thinking something is there when it's actually happening inside itself. Hallucinations can happen when we're tired, half asleep or just waking up. They can happen when our eyesight has gone and when it is in some way defective. If we have a limb amputated we are still convinced the limb is there.

But hallucinations can be auditory as well as visual. People can hear music all the time or hear voices speaking to them or talking in the background. There's a tendency to think it is only schizophrenics who hear voices telling them to do things but the majority of people who hear voices are not schizophrenic. The author quotes many examples from his own patients and the case histories make fascinating reading. He also tells of his own experiences with licit and illicit drugs.

I enjoyed reading this well written and interesting book and would recommend it to anyone who wants to better understand themselves and the way their brain works. There are notes on each chapter, a bibliography which gives the reader an opportunity to read more on the subject and an index.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars fascinating topic 15 Jan 2013
Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase
The early chapters of this book with the descriptions and explanations of the various types of hallucination suffered by people with Charles Bonnet Syndrome were most interesting. Then there were descriptions of the authors own experiments with hallucinogenic drugs, then hallucinations connected with various other states such as narcolepsy. Somehow the book didn't seem to hold together for me. I was also disappointed that there was little in depth discussion of the hallucinations and delusions associated with dementia though the subject was referred to. Perhaps my expectations were at fault. A large portion of the book is devoted to notes and references so would be useful to the psychology / medical student
Was this review helpful to you?
18 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By CMB VINE VOICE
Format:Hardcover|Vine Customer Review of Free Product (What's this?)
This is an important book.

By helping to reduce the stigma of hallucinations (including voices) that many people associate with madness (including, unfortunately, some doctors, according to Sacks), this book makes clear that hallucinations can be almost normal, and certainly much commoner than expected.

Time after time, patients don't admit to hallucinations until a doctor, with the right approach, asks. Generally, it seems, the question is not asked and so there is a general ignorance, which this book helps put to rights.

The brain is an amazing organ, and builds a picture of reality. I'd rather Oliver Sacks went into greater detail on how the brain does this - but obviously much is unknown and arguable. If sensory input is lacking, the brain tries to compensate, and may over do it. Almost anyone can experience this - just by looking at a blank wall in silence for long enough ("the prisoner's cinema"). Sensory input can be considered "bottom up" - there's also lack of "top down" control that can occur in epileptic fits, trauma (including loss of a long-loved spouse) that also can cause hallucinations. Sacks pretty much destroys transcendental effects (as in religions, meditation, near-death experiences etc) on this basis.

When freed of sensory input, hallucinations can go beyond worldly perceptions, such as the vividness and range of colours being greater than ever seen. Although frequently spoken of by those who've experienced hallucinations, they can be easily dismissed by those who've not experienced them. Not Sacks though - as he gives an unfettered account of his drug-taking years in the 1960's. It takes a strong mind to have survived as he did.
Read more ›
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Recommeded
Nice relaxing read. Each chapter goes on perhaps a bit long but I enjoyed it
Published 12 days ago by J Lye
2.0 out of 5 stars It's really a digest of all patients Oliver had. ...
It's really a digest of all patients Oliver had. Could invest a bit into writing a story out of it. Had to read every 5th page.
Published 13 days ago by Anton Kamnev
2.0 out of 5 stars Two Stars
Vg
Published 21 days ago by royker
5.0 out of 5 stars because Oliver Sacks is a superb communicator and has great knowledge...
How do we see the world? What is visual perception? Can we believe our vision? Do we sometimes hallucinate? Read more
Published 22 days ago by Bakaralph
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Excellent, as always. Very clearly written and documented.
Published 1 month ago by E. Holmans
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Amazing and entertaining
Published 2 months ago by Miss Camilla C Mulligan
3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
Interesting but a bit waffly.
Published 2 months ago by Ms. Pj Hawcroft
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
I didn't realise what this was until I had read it. Not what I expected, but some people may like it. It is a documentary.
Published 2 months ago by L. Freeman
5.0 out of 5 stars Hallucinations
Great book of case studies on hallucinations, easy to read and interesting if you like the topic. I like the lighthearted tone of the book and Sacks strips away the stigma... Read more
Published 4 months ago by B. Presland
4.0 out of 5 stars wow
enjoyed this book so much.discusses a topic most of us wouldn't want to admit to experiencing which was great.It is humourous but
sympathetic at the same time. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Amazon Customer
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Customer Discussions


Look for similar items by category


Feedback