The Shaking Woman or A History of My Nerves

FROM THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF WHAT I LOVED AND A WOMAN LOOKING AT MEN LOOKING AT WOMEN

‘Provocative but often funny, encyclopedic but down to earth . . . an extraordinary double story’ Oliver Sacks

‘It is Hustvedt’s gift to write with exemplary clarity of what is by necessity unclear’ Hilary Mantel, Guardian

While speaking at a memorial event for her father, the novelist Siri Hustvedt suffered a violent seizure from the neck down. Was it triggered by nerves, emotion – or something else entirely?

In this profoundly thought-provoking and revealing book, Hustvedt takes the reader on her journey through psychiatry, philosophy, neuroscience and medical history in search of a diagnosis. Conveying the often frightening mysteries of illness, she illuminates the perennially mysterious connection between mind and body and what we mean by ‘I’.

‘She has an enviable ability to digest and reframe her discoveries into clear, accessible prose’ Sunday Telegraph



PRAISE FOR SIRI HUSTVEDT:

‘Hustvedt is that rare artist, a writer of high intelligence, profound sensuality and a less easily definable capacity for which the only word I can find is wisdom’ Salman Rushdie

‘It is Hustvedt’s gift to write with exemplary clarity of what is by necessity unclear’ Hilary Mantel

‘Her novels have received a deserved acclaim. But to my mind, she is even more to be admired as an essayist . . . in this regard I feel that she resembles Virginia Woolf ‘ Observer

‘Few contemporary writers are as satisfying and stimulating to read as Siri Hustvedt’ Washington Post