A well written and fairly thorough biography of Wilhelm Reich, an Austrian Jewish psychiatrist who began his career under Freud. He was one of the several who had a falling out with Freud, along with Jung and Adler. But Reich went off into several different directions beyond psychiatry, and lived a fairly parapatetic life, going from Vienna to Berlin, Copenhagen, Britain, Oslo and finally Maine, in the US, often chased out of town because of his strange theories. One of his central beliefs was in a sort of life force, called orgone, that was related to sexuality, life, healing, and even UFOs (yes, he even goes there). The author of the novel is not a scientist, and perhaps believes in some paranormal phenomena himself, but I found his objectivity and sympathy refreshing- he doesn't simply dismiss Reich's weirder theories that scientists would trash without bothering to understand their logic (albeit, Reich's logic is sometimes quite absurd). The author recognizes Reich's inconsistencies, paranoia, self-destructive attitudes and behavior and points them out, but not in as condemning a fashion as many of Reich's opponents. There are long discourses on psychoanalytic theories and evolution of the movement that are quite well drawn out, and in and of themselves are worth reading, even if Reich is not one's main interest. Highly recommended for those interested in the history of psychiatry in the 20th century and in the history of the FDA in the US. ( )