Scan barcode
A review by kamehamedallada
Cure: A Journey Into the Science of Mind Over Body by Jo Marchant
4.0
This may have taken me years to finish, but nearly any time I've picked this up, there's been an incredible story, and research that blew my mind. This book is a collection of case-studies, but in most it's the author who has personally visited with patients, doctors, or caretakers to understand what's at stake. Marchant presents scientific data behind alternative treatments to medicine, but in equal parts or more, she shares the anecdotes of those seeking to provide or receive healing which made the data so much more digestible.
What I liked most was Marchant's personal POV when introducing and exploring a topic or person. For example, she would walk into a room to meet someone on one side of the world, or knock on someone else's door on another side of the world, placing the reader in that setting. I felt like I was a part of her interviews, and it brought these individuals to a very intimate level before exploring the history of their malady. (There were some very oddly specific descriptors, like describing someone's tank top, or the accent they spoke with, which was distracting at times.) I think the first half to 2/3's of the book were most fascinating to me, but every chapter followed the same structure and began to feel like I was reading the same thing.
For many of these topics, I had a cursory knowledge of how the brain can influence the body, but potential readers don't need to have any prior knowledge to grasp what's in this book. Although I knew about some of the research, it was nice to have all the research that's currently available [originally published 2016] collected in one place, and contextualized in its applications. There was much more I hadn't known, and it was very satisfying to tuck this information away.
What I liked most was Marchant's personal POV when introducing and exploring a topic or person. For example, she would walk into a room to meet someone on one side of the world, or knock on someone else's door on another side of the world, placing the reader in that setting. I felt like I was a part of her interviews, and it brought these individuals to a very intimate level before exploring the history of their malady. (There were some very oddly specific descriptors, like describing someone's tank top, or the accent they spoke with, which was distracting at times.) I think the first half to 2/3's of the book were most fascinating to me, but every chapter followed the same structure and began to feel like I was reading the same thing.
For many of these topics, I had a cursory knowledge of how the brain can influence the body, but potential readers don't need to have any prior knowledge to grasp what's in this book. Although I knew about some of the research, it was nice to have all the research that's currently available [originally published 2016] collected in one place, and contextualized in its applications. There was much more I hadn't known, and it was very satisfying to tuck this information away.