Damasio, a top neuroscientist examines how the body feels feelings from a chemical and anatomical perspective. Written for the general reader, the book spends much time following the author through the haunts and life of Spinoza, 17th century philosopher. Damasio argues that Spinoza's study of humans and nature gives insight to a possible new field in medical treatments. Sometimes, though, the Spinoza connection seemed a bit forced, as if a clever editor kept telling the author to work the Spinoza angle. But Damasio does have a gift for narrating complex science and pulls in interesting clinical studies such as uncontrollable laughter to illustrate his points and ultimately his description of how the brain might receive, process and create feelings is fascinating.

Share/Like this Review?