A Smell of Burning: A Memoir of Epilepsy

Description

Part memoir of Grant's late brother, part history of epilepsy- 'An extraordinary work of love and art, which left me choked with tears' Observer One day Colin Grant's teenage brother Christopher failed to emerge from the bathroom. His family broke down the door to find him unconscious on the floor. None of their lives were ever the same again. Christopher was diagnosed with epilepsy. In A Smell of Burning Colin Grant tells the remarkable story of this strange and misunderstood disorder. He shows us the famous people with epilepsy like Julius Caesar, Joan of Arc and Vincent van Gogh, the pioneering doctors whose extraordinary breakthroughs finally helped gain an understanding of how the brain works, and, through the tragic tale of his brother, he considers the effect of epilepsy on his own life.

Colin Grant is the author of three highly praised books- Negro with a Hat- The Rise and Fall of Marcus Garvey (2008), I and I- The Natural Mystics Marley, Tosh and Wailer (2011), Bageye at the Wheel (2012). He works as a radio producer for the BBC.

[A] brilliant, tender book... An extraordinary work of love and art, which left me choked with tears. -- Maggie Gee * Observer * A moving memoir as well as a historical study of epilepsy... With verve and sensitivity, Grant tells the stories of individual sufferers. -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times, Book of the Year * Grant's exploration of the literary, political, medical and scientific history of epilepsy is hugely compelling; his telling of the story of two brothers transcends the book's twin genres and leaves us with a wry, gentle masterpiece. -- Seamus Sweeney * Times Literary Supplement * A fascinating personal and historical account. ***** -- Helen Brown * Sunday Telegraph * A flawless amalgam of personal memoir, mind science and medical history. -- Ian Thomson * Spectator *