... perhaps this is to say no more than that this fascinating, wide-ranging and heartfelt book does not succeed in dumping cold explanatory water on every last mystery of human existence. And I confess I would be lying if I said I thought that was a bad thing.
... exciting ... Drawing on extensive cognitive science research — much of it his own — Solms argues that Freud’s theories anticipate some key findings in current brain research. In Solms’s reckoning, those controversial ideas weren’t just ahead of their time; he proposes that they still have something to teach neuroscience today ... [Solms] makes a convincing case for paying more attention to the 'densely knotted core of the brainstem' ... What is perhaps most striking about Solms’s project, though, is his insistence that Freud already laid the groundwork ... Thankfully, The Hidden Spring provides a necessary reminder that rational thinking isn’t all it seems to be.
... probing, complex ... For the lay reader, personal anecdotes such as these, along with the case studies Solms draws on, help ground our understanding of his thesis, which can be dense and presented in abstract, scientific language that is not always easy to process ... Solms can demand a lot of his reader. Although he is able to write clearly and descriptively, those without a background in science will have to work hard to understand ... As best I could, I stuck with him, and learned something along the way ... Surely this gives us much to think about.
... [a] highly, sometimes overly, detailed narrative ... Solms’ argument, which is often repetitive, can be daunting. In part, this is because of its language ... In part, it is because he alternately takes issue with or builds on the work of other scholars of consciousness, such as Antonio Damasio and Bud Craig, familiarity with whose theories is nearly a prerequisite for readers. Still, Solms makes valuable points ... Readers up to date with the scholarly controversy surrounding consciousness will find this a useful addition to it.
Solms concludes with a somewhat manically written discussion of the ethics of a conscious machine, complete with a plan for what he’d do if he were able to build one...His theory is complex, as is his writing...Still, readers who stay the course will find much to consider.
