The Man with a Shattered World: The History of a Brain Wound

Luria, A. R. Man With a Shattered World. Translated from the Russian by Lynn Solotaroff. New York, Basic Books, 1972. 20.5cm x 13.5cm. 165 pages. Original hardcover in original illustrated dustjacket. In protective Mylar. Ownership signature on endpaper. Near fine in a jacket with one small tear. A case study by this distinquished Russian pyschologist of a young soldier's struggle to regain his mental faculties after suffering a catastrophic head wound. In depicting this man's struggle, Professor Luria quotes extensively from the patient's diary, a slim work of about 3,000 words, which were painfully set down over a twenty-five-year period. The language, at first, is disjointed, and the patient's thoughts chaotic; later, as his understanding of language increases, he becomes more lucid. Writing was his only grasp on reality, as he records the gradual recall of his past.