Customer Reviews

Passions of the Mind

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I had cared little about Sigmund Freud, and even less about reading a thick book about him, but I was captivated by the title. Stone has great titles and I have read Lust of Life, and found it rather interesting. When I read Passions of the Mind, it took a while. This was years ago, but I have not forgotten how much I enjoyed it. When I finished it, it was with some sadness that I folded it pages together, and laid it down to rest. It was used when I got it. It is beat up and weary, but I loved it, and have a much different feeling, not only about Freud, but also about the students of medicine and the times about which it was written. These were real people, and I like real people. I would put this book much higher on an approval list than The Agony and the Ecstacy, which I never quite finished. Maurice Thorne

To pen a picture of one of the most complex persons in history and yet not lose the reader's interest is an art that Irving Stone has demonstrated time and again. This book is not an exception. Ideally suited for those who do not want to get lost in psychological mumbo jumbo and yet want to see the fascinating mind that caused a convulsion in the world of psychology...that's passions of the mind. A must for any Irving Stone fan, and yet a lot more enjoyable than many other tomes on this subject.

Book made a mark on my teen life so when my daughter was studying Sigmund Freud I searched Amazon and found it! I hope she enjoys it as I did and it makes an impression on her as well.

Shipper was true to schedule and we had NO problems with this seller. It arrived in plenty time for my daughter's birthday. Would highly recommend this seller.

After having finished a 1200 page copy of Mailer's "Harlot's Ghost", I was in the mood for another "big one" and started "Passions of the mind". At first I liked the description of (life in) 19th century Vienna and the start of the career of young Sigmund Freud. But with each page the enormous amount of details (on streets, towns, persons, cases) started to suffocate the story untill I lost all interest in the passionate mind of Freud. Just because I don't like to quit a book somewhere in the middle (and still have hope that it might get better) I finshed it. Interestingly, in the acknowledgements Stone thanks his editor (his wife) for reducing the original amount of pages to the half and thereby making the book twice as readable. I wish she had given the book that treatment a second time, maybe then it would have been really readable.....

Unfortunately out of print, this book colorfully illustrates the life of the revolutionary Sigmund Freud with terrific detail. This book gives the reader the chance to give Freud a taste of his own medecine, to psychoanalyze him; Stone lets us read the man Sigmund Freud like an open book. A solid biographical portrait.

After reading Jung's Memoirs, Dream, and Reflections, I dismissed Freud. Passions has opened up a whole new understanding and respect for Freudian psychoanalysis. I appreciate the insight and plan on delving deeper. Once again, there's always two sides to every story.

One of the best books I've ever read. I didn't want it to end. What a beatiful story. The story of the life of Feuud and his theory of pschoanalysis evolved beautifully. A must read.Irving Stone is a great story tell and this is one of his best!

The book is written as an easy way to understand the subject matter. It is not academic, although one gets alot out of the subject matter the way it is written.

Irving Stone writes the best biography's that read like a novel.

A great way to learn history & be entertained at the same time.

This is the first Irving Stone book I have read, so it took a few pages for me to get used to his very rich style. But once the style is understood, it is a fantastic read. Freud actually lived a remarkably "traditional" life (in the familial sense), which makes his radical ideas about the human mind all the more intriguing. Well worth reading. JK