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An Anthropologist On Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales Paperback – Illustrated, February 13, 1996

by Oliver Sacks (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 805 ratings
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From the bestselling author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat • Fascinating portraits of neurological disorder in which men, women, and one extraordinary child emerge as brilliantly adaptive personalities, whose conditions have not so much debilitated them as ushered them into another reality.

Here are seven detailed narratives of neurological patients, including a surgeon consumed by the compulsive tics of Tourette's syndrome unless he is operating; an artist who loses all sense of color in a car accident, but finds a new sensibility and creative power in black and white; and an autistic professor who cannot decipher the simplest social exchange between humans, but has built a career out of her intuitive understanding of animal behavior.

Sacks combines the well honed mind of an academician with the verve of a true storyteller.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    327 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Vintage
  4. Publication date
    February 13, 1996
  5. Dimensions
    5.18 x 0.76 x 7.93 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0679756973
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0679756972
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

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The works of neurologist Oliver Sacks have a special place in the swarm of mind-brain studies. He has done as much as anyone to make nonspecialists aware of how much diversity gets lumped under the heading of "the human mind."

The stories in An Anthropologist on Mars are medical case reports not unlike the classic tales of Berton Roueché in The Medical Detectives. Sacks's stories are of "differently brained" people, and they have the intrinsic human interest that spurred his book Awakenings to be re-created as a Robin Williams movie.

The title story in Anthropologist is that of autistic Temple Grandin, whose own book Thinking in Pictures gives her version of how she feels--as unlike other humans as a cow or a Martian. The other minds Sacks describes are equally remarkable: a surgeon with Tourette's syndrome, a painter who loses color vision, a blind man given the ambiguous gift of sight, artists with memories that overwhelm "real life," the autistic artist Stephen Wiltshire, and a man with memory damage for whom it is always 1968.

Oliver Sacks is the Carl Sagan or Stephen Jay Gould of his field; his books are true classics of medical writing, of the breadth of human mentality, and of the inner lives of the disabled. --Mary Ellen Curtin

From Publishers Weekly

Neurologist Sacks presents seven case studies of people whose "abnormalities" of brain function offer new insights into conceptions of human personality and consciousness.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Vintage; Illustrated edition (February 13, 1996)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 327 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0679756973
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0679756972
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.18 x 0.76 x 7.93 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 805 ratings

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Oliver Sacks

Oliver Sacks

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Oliver Sacks was born in 1933 in London and was educated at Queen's College, Oxford. He completed his medical training at San Francisco's Mount Zion Hospital and at UCLA before moving to New York, where he soon encountered the patients whom he would write about in his book Awakenings.

Dr Sacks spent almost fifty years working as a neurologist and wrote many books, including The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, Musicophilia, and Hallucinations, about the strange neurological predicaments and conditions of his patients. The New York Times referred to him as 'the poet laureate of medicine', and over the years he received many awards, including honours from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the Royal College of Physicians. In 2008, he was appointed Commander of the British Empire. His memoir, On the Move, was published shortly before his death in August 2015.

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4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
805 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

cassdog
5.0 out of 5 stars Explorer of the mind
Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2010
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Oliver Sacks is the master of the case study. He fills each detailed chapter on a `unique' individual with a precise description of symptoms, a detailed historical analysis of the condition and most importantly a sense of awe. This sense of awe usually comes about when the author delves in to some deep insight on what it is to be human. How a person who is made colorblind by a neurological deficiency can elucidate that we have two separate portions of our brain for seeing color, one that `sees' the light and one that turns it in to the mental model of color in our brain. This implies that much of what we see is simply a mental model of the world as other researchers have suggested. Continuing with the theme of vision, the author explores a man who is blind for his fifty plus years of life only to have his `vision' restored by a simple eye surgery. But although the newly `sighted' man can `see', he can't understand what he is seeing until he touches it first, can't understand pictures as representations of real images, can't understand the concept of space instead relating everything to the time it takes to move from point A to point B. This unique situation elucidates that learning and cognitive development are essential for how we see the world. The story of the Last Hippy is a fascinating and sad story of a man who was though to be undergoing enlightenment by the Hare Krishna cult he was involved with, but simply had a major tumor which; inhibited his memory and left him severely disabled in an institution the rest of his life. The same traits that the Krishna's valued as inward-looking, enlightenment characteristics are considered brain damage by others. This person's last memories were of the hippy days of the late sixties, so in a sense he is the last hippy. The two chapter discussion of autism, including the chapter which provides the title of the book are extremely fascinating. The author describes a few autistic individuals who can function to a high degree including a family of autistics who seem to live as if the outside world is totally alien and they are normal. Another person described is a professor with a PhD who herself feels like an anthropologist on Mars. She can never relate to people, have normal friendships or a love life because `something was going on between the other kids, something swift, subtle, constantly changing, a swiftness of understanding so remarkable that sometimes she wondered if they were all telepathic'. This description from an outsider provides a clear view of our social conventions, the non-verbal dialogue that makes us social primates. A fascinating book!
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David Wyles
5.0 out of 5 stars COMPLETING THE MAGICAL CIRCLE OF LIFE
Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2015
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Oliver Sacks delves deeply into the lives and minds of uniquely different individuals, including Temple Grandin, who has autism and studied "normal" or "neurotypical" people like an "Anthropologist on Mars," because she had no clue about how other people think or act and she desperately wanted to know how she could go about having social interactions in the world she had landed in. The essays in this book, including another one about a surgeon with Tourette's who is able to do delicate, difficult operations for 6 hours straight and who then goes home and punches holes in the dining room walls of his house, are all fascinating, perceptive, and eloquently written.

This is the first book about autism that I read after my own son was diagnosed at 3 1/2. He had regressed in language and spoke only in a perseverative babble for years. But, for him, music was the way "back into the world." He taught himself to read at the age of 9 through studying the lyrics of the songs he was listening to on the way to countless therapies.

Utterly incredible, but just this last week, my son with autism, Rio, aka "Soulshocka," was chosen to open the show, performing his own original rap song at the Club Nokia in L.A. in a Tribute to Temple Grandin herself.

Somehow, the circle seems magically complete now.
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SilviA
4.0 out of 5 stars Incredible insight!
Reviewed in the United States on October 6, 2012
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This book is intended for anyone who is interested in seeing the world through different eyes. You will not learn the cause of any neurological disorders; however, you will experience the world in seven very unique views. The challenges these individuals face during their lifetimes are unimaginable, but their adaptations to survive are even more incredible. Beware of spoilers.

Oliver Sacks begins the book by writing about a recent surgery on his right shoulder. Although he is right-handed he wrote the preface with his left hand, as his surgery did not permit use of his right arm for several weeks. The grand theme I noticed this book was adaptation. Rather than seeing patients with disabilities, Oliver Sacks sees opportunities for each individual to improve his or her adaptation skills.

An Anthropologist on Mars is written in seven sections - each one containing a different story. In these sections, Oliver Sacks describes his journey to understand each patient's life. His approach is very personal, as opposed to most neurologists. He visits his patients in their natural settings, such as in an art studio or at a concert, rather than in a clinical setting.

Case #1: "The Case of the Colorblind Painter" tells the story a man who has appreciated color for 56 years, until he was involved in a car accident. From that moment, his vision was in black and white. This change in vision was unbearable to him, so he only watched black and white TV and ate foods which were naturally color gradients of black or white. Years later he saw a sunrise and was inspired to paint again. Nuclear Sunrise marked the end of Mr. I's severe depression.

Case #2: My personal favorite case, "The Last Hippie", described a young Grateful Dead fan. He knew the lyrics of every song and attended a few of their concerts. He became religious shortly after high school and lived in isolation with his fellow Krishnas. He noticed some deterioration in his eyesight, but was pressured to ignore it. A few years later, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor the size of an orange, and could not remember anything after 1970. Sacks became close with him and attempted to understand his mind. After a few talks with Greg, Sacks realized he had no knowledge of current events, such as the President's name. The only thing they connected on was rock music. Sacks took him to a Grateful Dead concert in Madison Square Garden, and observed that he screamed for Pigpen, a deceased band member. Greg was able to sing along with all songs released before 1970, but termed their later music as "futuristic". Sacks played Grateful Dead CD's on the drive to the hospital where Greg resided, to keep the memory alive; however, the next day, Greg could not recount the concert. He mentioned that he went to two Grateful Dead concerts, but when asked if he had seen them in Madison Square Garden, he replied, "No, I've never been to the Garden."

Case #3: "A Surgeon's Life" describes the life of Dr. Carl Bennett, a surgeon and pilot with Tourette's. Oliver Sacks observed Dr. Bennett in his home and in the operating room. In the home, Dr. Bennett talked about his obsession with symmetry while constantly straightening his glasses. His tics, involving throwing heavy objects at kitchen appliances, were extreme; however, they completely disappeared in operating rooms and planes. Many people doubted he would become a successful surgeon because of his tics, but Dr. Bennett was never self-conscious about his tics. His confidence certainly played a role in his achievements.

Case #4: "To See and Not See" is the sad story of a man who was blind since birth, but had his vision partially restored after surgery. Many people would assume regaining sight is a positive occurrence, and the experiencing the world from then on is intuitive; however, Virgil tells Sacks differently. Although he could detect various colors and shapes, he did not grasp depth and perception. After falling ill for several years, Virgil lost his vision permanently. He called his blindness a "gift".

Case #5: "The Landscape of His Dreams" tells the tale of another painter in love with his hometown, Pontito in Tuscany. He was famous for his 3-D photographic memory. He only painted the streets, people, and adventures of Pontito. After suffering many horrors at the age of 31, Franco Magnani decided to permanently live in San Francisco, and never visit Pontito. With this decision came serious illness, which is still not identified. Magnani began having strange dreams about Pontito. He painted hundreds of works containing his dreams, with exquisite detail. Franco did eventually return to Pontito to find a worn down town, but he continued to paint as he remembered it from his childhood.

Case #6: "Prodigies" outlines the life of Stephen, a young British boy who is an autistic artist. He has been described as the "best in Britain". Oliver Sacks befriends Stephen and gets arithmetic lessons. He describes him as a condescending teacher, although Stephen tries very hard to teach Sacks without criticism. Here Sacks characteristics of autism: 50 percent
are mute and 95 percent are very limited in life. Stephen has "escaped from these statistics" and become a prodigy.

Case #7: "An Anthropologist on Mars", the title of this book, is about a woman named Temple Grandin. She is a professor and humanitarian; she cared about animals more than anything. Grandin is very involved with her work and community, and does not let her autism slow her life. She tells Sacks she sometimes feels like "an anthropologist on Mars" because she is she has a very different perspective

A few cases captivated me more than others, but all cases were very personal, making them very interesting to read. I enjoyed Oliver Sacks' writing style. It appeals to readers who don't have a scientific background and are just interested in different perspectives on life. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has never quite understood the difficulty in living with colorblindness, amnesia, Tourette's, or autism. Oliver Sacks does a fantastic job of providing insight into each individual's life, insight you would not get from reading traditional books on neurological disorders.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Arnab K Chowdhury
5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinarily insightful
Reviewed in India on July 3, 2022
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A book full of insights into the working of the human brain.
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taubertine
5.0 out of 5 stars Leer para ampliar el horizonte psycologico.
Reviewed in Spain on June 17, 2021
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El Sr. SACKS te enseña a respetar y a entender un poquito, el otro mundo de la psicología de personas diferentes. No te hace un experto, pero te abre nuevos horizontes de las personas descritas y analizadas. Muy interesante y para los que tengan miedo de inclusión de niños es clases "normales" una buena forma de comprender y aceptar.
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Amy Reinhart
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on June 2, 2016
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A wonderful book. Has made my drives to work much more reflective and engaging.
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Flavia
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome
Reviewed in Brazil on September 13, 2015
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It's an incredible book. Sacks described lovely those 7 stories and it arouses wonderful feelings. Everyone should read for hitting some prejudice!
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A Raven
5.0 out of 5 stars A fabulous read.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 18, 2016
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Possibly one of my favourite Oliver Sacks books.

This follows the usual format which Dr Sacks uses and goes chapter by chapter with a different patient and diagnosis.

Hugely interesting and at times tragic read. I could weep for The Last Hippy (Greg F) left so gravely disabled because an enormous brain tumour caused symptoms his religious cult saw as "enlightenment". Had he been encouraged to seek medical attention when the symptoms first appeared he would have made a full recovery. We meet Greg because his tumour was not treated in time for that full recovery.

Other chapters deal with colour blindness in a painter, Tourette's syndrome in a surgeon and more cases with other issues.

As always with Oliver Sacks you get a real sense of the person with the impairment. This is something I have a,ways liked about the books of Dr Sacks and this one is no exception. Indeed the quote at the beginning of the book sums this up beautifully. "Ask not what disease the patient has but rather what person the disease has."

Classic Oliver Sacks. Well worth a read.
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