Review by Booklist Review
Wolman, a proud southpaw and lover of all things left, decided to delve into the science and culture of left-handedness, hoping to discover if there is any significance in 10 percent to 12 percent of the population's natural preference for the left hand. What Wolman finds are a lot of theories but few concrete answers. One scientist thinks a phenomenon dubbed Right Shift is responsible for the language and right-handed dominance that set humans apart from other mammals. Or do they? Another scientist believes chimps exhibit a similar preference for the right hand. Yet another posits that the divide is more along the lines of single-handedness versus mixed-handedness. Along the way, Wolman meets some colorful characters, including a handwriting guru and a man who had his left hand attached to his right arm after an accident. For those with a keen interest in the subject, Wolman debunks many of the myths associated with handedness and provides a lively account for those interested in the significance of being a lefty or a righty. --Kristine Huntley Copyright 2005 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Why are so many humans right-handed when most animal species show random preferences for one side or another? Is a preference for the left hand an indicator of brain difference? How do developing embryos figure out which side is left, anyway, and why is that information so critical to their development? Wolman's breezy, informative account of "what makes left-handers special" tackles these and other fascinating questions on its journey to finding out what exactly handedness means and why it happens. The author, a proud member of "the fraternity of Southpaw" and a journalist whose work has appeared in New Scientist, Discover and Wired, travels all over the world to find his answers, and his lively tales of visits to the field's top researchers double as solid introductions to the science of handedness. Though his visits to a palmist in Quebec and a graphologist in Virginia are less than entertaining-he finds them illogical, they find him irritating-his attempts at left-handed golf in Japan and lefthanded sword fighting in Scotland are funny and instructive. Amusing and thorough, this little tome makes a good gift for the left-handers on the Christmas list. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Journalist and "strong lefty" Wolman takes readers on an idiosyncratic world tour in pursuit of an understanding-and celebration-of left-handedness. His travels take him to the Dupuytren Museum in Paris to visit its morbid anatomy collection and view brains studied by 19th-century surgeon Paul Broca, who first discerned the asymmetry of the brain. He visits the Yerkes Primate Research Center in Atlanta, meets a double amputee in Illinois whose left hand was successfully reconnected to his right arm, and plays a tournament (in entertainingly bad fashion) with the National Association of Left-Handed Golfers in Japan. Wolman participates in a handwriting analysis class in Virginia and a palmistry course in Quebec, though he finds both pursuits intellectually dishonest. He is far more enthusiastic about the research of the geneticists, psychologists, and other scientists whom he visits during his quest for the cause and meaning of left-handedness. Science hasn't yet revealed exactly how or why ten to 12 percent of us are Southpaws-so this book, naturally, displays a frustrating inconclusiveness. But it's an entertaining exploration and an intriguing look into new research and ongoing debate. Appropriate for public libraries.-Janet Ingraham Dwyer, Worthington Libs., OH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
