This book is exactly what I was looking for. It is quite sad that there is such a lack of human psychology and neuroscience books out there that actually focus on HUMAN research and experiences rather than detailing horrific abuses of nonhuman animals. This is the first psych/neuro book I have read in a long time that actually did it right. It is full of cognitive neuroscience research so if you are not into understanding the brain areas that affect human function and experience, you may not get what you need here. As someone who formerly worked in cog neuro and who often craves it, this was perfect.

The author is also quite compassionate and intentional in his writing. I thought he should have deferred more to what Autistic peoples definitions of their experiences are more in the chapter on Autism. But, all of the others- especially that on BIID- I thought were navigated carefully. Ananthaswamy found ways to discuss research into and the struggles many have with diagnoses while also presenting people as whole and human, rather than all pathology.

There is a sprinkling of philosophy throughout the book that holds things together nicely. I learned quite a few things and ended up wishing I took notes. This is a really great set of interviews, case studies, and human research that's actually relevant to humans. Well written to boot.