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This is a study of the origin and meaning of right and left sidedness and its relation to personality and language. The author, who is Assistant Clinical Professor of New York University College of Medicine, has made one of the most careful and scholarly studies of handedness which it has been my opportunity to see. He has apparently left no aspect of the subject untouched and unstudied. The style is clear and the arrangement of the material makes the book not only helpful but interesting as well.
The book is divided into six parts and eleven chapters. The first part of the book is a discussion of the previous theories of laterality. The author says 'that few questions of common biological interest can boast of so many and varied explanations and the age-old riddle of right and left laterality and the problem still lacks an effectual solution'. In discussing the characteristics of laterality he says that the determination of laterality is a much more complicated project than is generally realized.
One of the most interesting chapters in the book is the discussion of personality and sinistrality. The author concludes that, in his opinion, 'the retraining of the sinistral is not generally a hazardous procedure and does not produce ill effects if carried on with tolerance, sympathy, and understanding of the personality need of the individual'.
Another chapter which is deeply interesting is the one on dominance factor in language and the development of language disorders. The discussion of stuttering is especially helpful.
The author in his discussion shifts the emphasis from some