Seeing Voices

'Seeing Voices is both a history of the deaf and an account of the development of an extraordinary and expressive language' Evening Standard Imaginative and insightful, Seeing Voices offers a way into a world that is, for many people, alien and unfamiliar -- for to be profoundly deaf is not just to live in a world of silence, but also to live in a world where the visual is paramount. In this remarkable book, Oliver Sacks explores the consequences of this, including the different ways in which the deaf and the hearing learn to categorize their respective worlds -- and how they convey and communicate those experiences to others. 'Seeing Voices is a manifesto, characteristically humane and impassioned; once more, Sacks proves he is the doyen of science with a human face' Sunday Times 'Empathetic, intelligent and compassionate' Guardian 'Scholarly and carefully documented, Seeing Voices makes the gigantic leap so essential to understanding total deafness' Sunday Telegraph 'A passionate meditation on the richness of sign language' Independent

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. For more information, visit www.oliversacks.com

"This book will shake your preconceptions about the deaf, about language and about thought--. Sacks [is] one of the finest and most thoughtful writers of our time."--"Los Angeles Times Book Review""Fascinating and richly rewarding--. Sacks is a profoundly wise observer."--"The Plain Dealer""One cannot read more than a few pages of Sacks without seeing something in a new way. His breadth of understanding and expression seems limitless."--"Kansas City Star""A remarkable book, penetrating, subtle, persuasive--. [It] will likely become a classic."--"St. Louis Post-Dispatch"