The Puzzle of Left-handedness
Rik Smits
Left-handedness seems to be no big deal. Many of us are left-handed and those of us who aren’t don’t tend to give left-handedness much thought. Yet throughout history left-handers have been associated with clumsiness, untrustworthiness and insincerity. The Latin word for left, sinister, is redolent of all kinds of ominous connotations. Rik Smits uncovers why history has been so unkind to our left-handed forebears. Through an array of historical anecdotes, strange superstitions and old wives’ tales, Smits explains why left-handedness continues to be associated with maladies of all kinds, including mental retardation, alcoholism, asthma, hay fever, diabetes, insomnia, suicidal urges, criminality and shorter lifespans.
But apart from folklore and myth, the notions of left and right have a real and deep influence on the way we experience the world. These influences show up everywhere, from engineering and architecture to music, painting, photography, film and comics. This book shows how, contrary to what many might think, left-handers can write just as well as the rest of us, and explores how and why we came to prefer one hand over the other and how left- and right-handedness are represented in the brain. The greatest puzzle is why in every country one in ten people favours the left hand. It is a mystery as yet largely unsolved, whose solution may very well lie in the secrets of twinning. The Puzzle of Left-handedness is an enlightening and entertaining odyssey through the enigmas and paradoxes, theories and experiments surrounding the left-handed among us.
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About Rik Smits
Reviews for The Puzzle of Left-handedness
Sunday Times
[Smits] history of handedness is a fascinating cornucopia of science and superstition . . . He neatly skewers many pseudo-scientific claims, including the myth of high mortality rates among left-handers.
The Guardian
In this scholarly and entertaining book, Rik Smits takes us on an impressive odyssey through the paradoxes and theories of left-handed lore.
Mail on Sunday
[a] fascinating study of left-handedness . . . Mistrust of the left hand, as Smits shows, is widespread, but he dispatches popular legends about left-handedness entertainingly and ably, in a trenchant defence of the misunderstood left-hander
The Culture, Sunday Times
It is a lively read, and Smits, a linguist and science writer, shows his wide range of knowledge throughout . . . The book is well arranged, with mainly short, crisp chapters. I thoroughly recommend it as a good overview of issues related to hand preference . . . Everyone will find something thought-provoking, witty or just interesting, regardless of personal hand preference.
Times Higher Education
[Smits] is a clever and thorough researcher . . . sprinkled with enough oddball characters and head-scratching factoids to keep you reading.
Washington Post
in his highly entertaining and erudite book, left-handed linguist and science journalist Rik Smits dispenses with the positive myths alongside the negative ones.
The Dubliner
Like language, and sexuality, left-handedness is a very human thing and this cabinet of curiosities goes into the cultural prejudices at length.
The Melbourne Age
The Puzzle of Left-handedness takes a sympathetic look at discrimination against this minority . . . This book does a first-rate job of deconstructing bogus theories linking left-handedness with everything from cancer to alcoholism.
Kansas City Star