BOOK REVIEW: No Ordinary Life

Jeffrey Weitzman, MD

On the Move: A Life, Oliver Sacks, MD, Knopf, 397 pages (2015).

I can recall years ago first hearing a sonorous voice on the radio speaking impeccable English in a way that only an Oxford education makes possible. It did not take long to realize this voice conveyed medical knowledge and was in fact Oliver Sacks, the physician Robin Williams portrayed in the film Awakenings. Over the years, in 12 books and numerous articles, Dr. Sacks had much to say about neurologic disease and the functioning of the human mind. Since first hearing his voice, I listened to him many times on radio and TV, always finding his voice mesmerizing and his intellectual range broad. But who was the man?

In his recently published (April 2015) autobiography, On the Move: A Life, Oliver (I feel he would not object to my calling him by his first name as he was a pretty informal guy) lays out the journey through his fascinating, distinguished life. Some of it, to my pleasant surprise, played out right here in Northern California and Marin County. Oliver was raised in England in a family that had produced a lot of physicians, including both his parents. Oliver wanted to separate himself from this background and find his own identity. He also came to realize that London and, particularly, his family were not accepting of his being gay. These two issues, plus a love of motorcycles and speed, made the lure of California irresistible.

Oliver outlines his journey in America—from an unlicensed physician to choosing neurology as his profession and setting up a unique medical practice. His approach to medicine was an intellectual pursuit, both in trying to understand the normal function of the human mind and the dysfunction brought on by disease. He was refreshingly unmotivated by money or power. He was fiercely dedicated to his patients, and they, in turn, were fiercely dedicated to him. His use of dopamine to “awaken” institutionalized post-encephalitis Parkinson’s patients was the basis for his writings not only in peer-reviewed medical journals but also in The New York Review of Books and London Review of Books. These writings eventually led to Awakenings.

Oliver realized early that he loved writing, and he may have been unique in publishing case histories of some of his more interesting patients in lay publications. One, The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat, received more interest from the general public than from his medical associates, many of whom considered this an ethical breach.

Oliver also indulged in the Southern California beach scene, had a brush with drug dependency and explored his repressed sexuality. A big guy, he became a body builder and competitive weight lifter who at one point held the California state record for squat lifting—600 lbs! A polymath if ever there was one, Oliver was also passionate about swimming and diving, something he could indulge in as he later traveled the world seeking out neurological conditions in isolated populations such as those of Micronesia and Guam.

Oliver eventually moved to New York City to continue his practice and study, often coming into conflict with those who did not agree with his unconventional approaches. Gradually, through his articles and books, he gained national and international fame. He estimated he had thousands of notebooks filled with jotted thoughts and ideas. Some of these he would refer to in preparing talks or writing, but most he didn’t. In his own words, “The act of writing, when it goes well, gives me a pleasure, a joy, unlike any other. It takes me to another place—irrespective of my subject—where I am totally absorbed and oblivious to distracting thoughts, worries, preoccupations or indeed the passage of time. In those rare, heavenly states of mind, I may write nonstop until I can no longer see the paper. Only then do I realize that evening has come and that I have been writing all day.”

There are some interesting stories in Oliver’s book. These include actor Robert De Niro’s hiding in his house while learning his role in Awakenings. Another centers on Oliver’s inclusion with Francis Crick, of Crick and Watson fame, in an intellectual circle of scientists trying to understand consciousness and thought and the functioning of the human brain. Crick wonders at one point if his medical condition will end his quest prematurely. Unfortunately, Oliver would share the same fate.

Oliver published several articles in The New York Times over the past few months. In them, he revealed he had a recurrence of an earlier case of melanoma and was now experiencing physical decline and facing his own mortality. He found love at a late age, and wrote about issues important to him, like being Jewish and celebrating the Sabbath, and his love of chemistry and the periodic table.

Oliver passed away just weeks ago, on Aug. 30. I felt the same sadness I had when I heard Robin Williams passed away. Two people whose careers became intertwined, whom I did not know personally but would have liked to—both of whom influenced others, made them laugh and made them cry.

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Dr. Weitzman is an emergency medicine specialist at Marin General Hospital; he also practices geriatric medicine in Marin County and student health at UC Berkeley. He asks any readers who may have had contact with Oliver Sacks during his years in California to get in touch, “especially if they are willing to share some stories.”

Email: jweitzmanmd@gmail.com