Review by Booklist Review
Just when you thought you were familiar with most of the really unusual medical ailments, along comes fatal familial insomnia (FFI), which has afflicted one Italian family for two centuries. The disease strikes in middle age. Symptoms include profuse sweating, constipation, impotence, and sudden onset of menopause. Eventually the body, deprived of sleep, begins to shut down. Fifteen months after the first symptoms appear, the patient dies. The brutal thing about FFI is that, while a lot is known about its effects, very little is known about its cause or its treatment (if there is a treatment). The book is like a nonfiction version of a Michael Crichton novel: an enigmatic illness, a family in jeopardy, a race against the clock to find a cure. Max, a science journalist, uses FFI as a springboard to tell a broader story about the history of fatal diseases for which cures are desperately needed, such as Parkinson's and mad cow. It would be a mistake to call this book entertaining --it's too unsettling and scary for that--but it's certainly very timely and compellingly written. --David Pitt Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
An engaging nonfiction "medical mystery" starts with the strange case of an Italian family whose members, upon reaching a certain age, succumb to a sort of sleeping disorder that causes not only insomnia but certain death. The cause of this disease is determined to be prions--infectious agents derived from proteins, not viruses--so Max explores other prion diseases, such as mad cow disease and kuru, and delves into the history of prion research as a way of unraveling the mysteries behind the disease that's been plaguing the titular family for generations. Gardner lets the material do most of the heavy lifting by narrating in a plain, unadorned style that keeps his own contributions to the narrative minimal, the auditory equivalent of transparent prose. The pacing and fascinating subject matter keep the listener fully engaged throughout, resulting in an audiobook that will certainly be no cure for insomnia. In fact, it might even warrant an advisory warning: side effects may include sleepless nights, caused by a strong desire to get to the next chapter. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
