The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons

Sam Kean brings another bit of science to us with lively characters and his own bit of humor.

I enjoyed this book - but don't expect too much focus on the early ‘dueling neurosurgeons' - the book covers so much about the brain, what we know and still don't know.

I enjoyed parts of this book a great deal - and was ok on other parts. I listened to this one in the car. As with “the Disappearing Spoon” - this one is a story about a large topic broken up in vignettes - each chapter focuses on an area of the brain. Like “Disappearing Spoon” - some topics lend themselves better to story telling than others. The strongest chapter in the book was the section on Kuru, which is something I knew nothing about (other than a throw-away diagnosis from the tv series House). The chapter covers the discovery and research history of the disease - and, it was so well told I found I wanted to remain in the car to listen. The Broca and Phineas Gage chapters were also excellent.

I've been a fan of Sam Kean's writing since I first picked up The Disappearing Spoon, and though I'm late to the game when it comes to Dueling Neurosurgeons, I'm still very glad I picked it up. It's pretty clear that Kean's got a good grasp of his writing style, and it shines in this book the same way it does in The Violinist's Thumb. There's a playfulness and lightness to his writing that doesn't sacrifice the heavier, more important stuff, and I think that's a good quality to have in a writer who's dealing with some very weighty topics - weighty not necessarily because the ideas are complex (though they are), but because they touch upon some very sensitive and likely controversial topics. That's especially true when you're talking about the brain and what goes on in it, and the implications for, well, everything makes us who we are.

As always, great new book from Kean, and here's hoping that his latest, Caesar's Last Breath, will be just as good - though given how he's something on a roll right now, I'm sure it will be.