Alice Weaver Flaherty

Sent across the Atlantic on an ocean liner in order to visit her grandmother in Scotland, young Katerina-Elizabeth continually chucks her oatmeal - a food she simply cannot stand! - out the porthole. It is eaten by a little ocean worm, who begins to grow exponentially, as he follows the ship across the sea. Eventually ship, girl and worm reach Loch Ness, where the now gigantic creature becomes the fabled Nessie, AKA the Loch Ness Monster...

An immensely entertaining original pourquoi story, show more The Luck of the Loch Ness Monster: A Tale of Picky Eating pairs an amusing tale from author A.W. Flaherty with expressive artwork from illustrator Scott Magoon. Any child who has had a food they just didn't like - for me, it was spinach! - will identify with Katerina-Elizabeth, and will appreciate this creative explanation for how the Loch Ness Monster came to be. There's even an author's afterword discussing being a picky eater, and the science behind it. Recommended to all young picky eaters, and to Loch Ness Monster fans. show less

The Midnight Disease: The Drive to Write, Writer's Block, and the Creative Brain is written by Alice Flaherty, a neurologist. Her medical training has a profound impact on the book, but even more so weighs the event that changed her life: the premature birth and death of twin boys. Her subsequent postpartum disorder brought on depression and mania, including hypergraphia--the constant need to write. But this isn't a memoir, even though her voice and experience are integral. This is about the show more very nature of the human brain and how mental states and trauma impact our ability to read and write, causing crippling writer's block or the inability to step away from the pen or keyboard.

I loved this book. It's not an easy read, though. You need a basic understanding of the brain and what does what, though Flaherty does a wonderful job of elaborating. The temporal lobe is essential to the writer. I was amazed at how conditions such as epilepsy and bipolar disorder directly impact how prolificly a person writes. It also delves into depression and autism, issues within my own family.

If you write and want to understand why, read this book. It won't give you direct answers, but you'll have a lot to think--and write--about. show less

I started the book last summer as part of my attempt to get over my own blocked writing. It took me a long time to read not because the book is difficult or boring. It is neither of those things. However, it is a book packed to bursting with ideas that require digesting. A doctor and scientist goes through her own mental illness, which causes changes in her relationship to writing. That leads her to explore how our brains allow us to write (or keep us from writing), among other things. This show more is a small book -- 307 pages, including extensive notes and index -- but is is incredibly readable. It is funny, poignant, insightful, and very, very quotable.

I intend to read the book again, this time with a highlighter, and to take notes. There's too much in this book for one reading, and all of it interests me. show less

Though it took me more than two years to read, this is an amazing book. It was the first genuinely fascinating nonfiction book I had read, and has inspired me to read more nonfiction since then. Flaherty brilliantly presents all possible angles on her subject, and is a delight to read.