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In this neurological account, Oliver Sacks documents his clinical experience treating victims of encephalitis lethargica at Mount Carmel Hospital. These patients had remained in a state of frozen catatonia for decades following the global sleeping sickness epidemic. Sacks describes the administration of L-DOPA, a precursor to dopamine, which triggered a sudden physiological and cognitive revival. The text details individual case histories, recording how these men and women navigated the return of motor function and speech while attempting to reconcile with a social world that had aged forty years in their absence.

Medical professionals and students of psychology read this work to understand the physiological link between neurochemistry and personality. It serves those interested in how organic brain damage dictates the boundaries of individual identity. Readers gain a technical perspective on the limitations of pharmacological intervention and the unpredictable nature of patient response to neurotransmitter stimulation. The book provides a factual basis for discussing the mechanics of consciousness and the biological requirements for sustaining a sense of self over time.