Oliver Sacks' Reading List

What happens to the brain when it's on mind-altering drugs? Forget Hunter S. Thompson for now. Aldous Huxley gives us all a first-hand account of his experiences with mescaline, writing what perhaps may be a great example of essay writing and journal keeping.

Oliver Sack's isn't the first, and neither will he be the last to recommend this epic tale of seafaring revenge. It's a great study of a psyche behind a man who's hell bent on achieving his goals.

Aldous Huxley is one of the rare fiction writers who work gets repeatedly recommended in Sack's list. Brave New World, much like 1984, was a fantastic piece of sci-fiction dystopian writing of what might be very plausible in the future.

Dostoevsky is one of the great Russian writers that gets on many people's recommended list. And The Idiot is arguably one of his more accessible work, if you want to get started.

Love him or hate him, Charles Dickens is the definition of Victorian writing. Great Expectations is not an easy read, given its volume and length, but one thing's for sure, it's one of the classics that will stick.

Oliver Sacks was a man much intrigued by the brain and the workings of it. William James' The Principles of Psychology is perhaps one of the earliest works in trying to decipher the way we think, react and respond to stimuli and surroundings.

This one is not so much Jurassic Park, but more Heart of Darkness maybe. The Lost World is a splendid look into the South American basin where dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures still exist. One of the fears of Victorian writing is that they may seem droll and uninspiring sometimes, but Sir Arthur writes with such vividness and clarity that we couldn't bear to put it down.

Medicine isn't just about cold, hard science. It involves stories of healthcare workers, patients and the families that are involved. Cecil Helman, who trained in South Africa and worked in London for 27 years shares the social, political and cultural context of medicine and healing.

H.G. Wells is best known for War of the Worlds, but Oliver Sacks chose one of his more underrated works. The sci-fi maestro definitely has a knack and skill when it comes to this genre, and this collection of short stories definitely shine.

Tolstoy is also another Russian writer that gets recommended, and for good reason. And instead of the acclaimed Anna Karenina, Oliver Sacks chooses short story Master and Man. The detailing of protagonist Vasili Andreyitch's existential crisis as he freezes to death allows Tolstoy to show off his literary skill, as well as his philosophical take on life.