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The Family That Couldn't Sleep: A Medical Mystery
The Family That Couldn't Sleep A Medical Mystery
Author: D. T. Max
For two hundred years a noble Venetian family has suffered from an inherited disease that strikes their members in middle age, stealing their sleep, eating holes in their brains, and ending their lives in a matter of months. In Papua New Guinea, a primitive tribe is nearly obliterated by a sickness whose chief symptom is uncontrollable laughter....  more »
ISBN-13: 9780812972528
ISBN-10: 081297252X
Publication Date: 9/11/2007
Pages: 336
Edition: Reprint
Rating:
  • Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
 14

4.1 stars, based on 14 ratings
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Audio CD
Members Wishing: 6
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

BaileysBooks avatar reviewed The Family That Couldn't Sleep: A Medical Mystery on + 491 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
This was a very interesting book detailing the developments of prion theory in relation to mysterious diseases like scrapie, mad cow, and fatal familial insomnia.

I thought that Max did a very good job weaving in and out of history to show the progression of the disease, the people and animals affected by it, and the scientists and researchers dedicated to solving its mysteries.

This book was well-researched and organized. However, for anyone who is squeemish about meat eating or meat consumption, I would probably offer a caution as the details of prion transmission are unappetizing to say the least.

In all I found this book to be well worth my time. It was factual without being boring, moved along at a steady pace, and managed to cover a very large scope of science and history in a very concise and straightforward way.
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