Overview

'An incredible voyage of discovery . . . intensely moving and awe-inspiring' - Marina Hyde 'A moving, thoughtful and truly fascinating read' - Abi Morgan, author of This is Not a Pity Memoir 'Witty, modest and enthralling' - Robert McCrum, author of My Year Off In How to Use a Fork, the beautiful science of brain plasticity meets remarkable human stories of survival and recovery. We discover the woman who thought her arm was a baby, the man who saw mannequins peering at him through the dark, and the patient who found his way back to human interaction through music. As a medical student, Orlando Swayne was taught that a broken brain doesn't mend. But as a junior doctor, he began to meet patients for whom this was clearly not the case. Intrigued by what he saw, he delved deep into the emerging neuroscience of brain reorganisation, and discovered that over time brain tissue creates new networks and regenerates. Developments in neurology continue to reveal new capabilities that allow functions we thought to be lost to be restored. The key to recovery, a return to some semblance of our previous selves after brain injury, lies in neurorehabilitation: painstaking work that rebuilds shattered lives. Irresistible to anyone who is curious about the mysteries of the brain, How to Use a Fork is a fascinating journey into the outer reaches of human experience.

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9781035064335

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Reviews

It's like walking hand in hand with Dr Swayne and his patients, which made me ache with hope that even in the darkest places you can find your way back -- Abi Morgan

'Enjoyable, instructive and humane. It is a welcome addition to the noble tradition of Oliver Sacks . . . Neuroscience, medicine and vulnerable humanity woven together in intricate and compelling tales from the front line. -- Professor Ian Robertson, author of <i>How Confidence Works</i> It's like walking hand in hand with Dr Swayne and his patients, which made me ache with hope that even in the darkest places you can find your way back -- Abi Morgan

'Enjoyable, instructive and humane. It is a welcome addition to the noble tradition of Oliver Sacks . . . Neuroscience, medicine and vulnerable humanity woven together in intricate and compelling tales from the front line. -- Professor Ian Robertson, author of <i>How Confidence Works</i> It's like walking hand in hand with Dr Swayne and his patients, which made me ache with hope that even in the darkest places you can find your way back -- Abi Morgan An incredible voyage of discovery . . . intensely moving and awe-inspiring -- Marina Hyde

Author Information

Orlando Swayne is a consultant neurologist who works primarily in the neurorehabilitation of acquired brain injury, including stroke, but who also has a wide general neurology practice. He is a consultant neurologist at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN), where he leads the Neurorehabilitation Unit, and is a member of the Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation at the UCL Institute of Neurology. He also works at Northwick Park Hospital and the Wellington Hospital. He has published widely on the control of movement by the brain and the role of brain plasticity in recovery following stroke. How to Use a Fork is his first book.

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