The Book of Phobias and Manias: A History of Obsession

by Kate Summerscale

The Book of Phobias and Manias is a thrilling compendium of 99 obsessions that have shaped us all, the rare and the familiar, from ablutophobia (a horror of washing) to syllogomania (a compulsion to hoard) to zoophobia (a fear of animals).

Phobias and manias are deeply personal experiences, and among the most common anxiety disorders of our time, but they are also clues to our shared past. The award-winning author Kate Summerscale uses rich and riveting case studies to trace the origins of our obsessions, unearthing a history of human strangeness, from the middle ages to the present day, and a wealth of explanations for some of our most powerful aversions and desires.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Psychology, Mental Health, Science, Audiobook, Health

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 27, 2022

About the author

Kate Summerscale (born in 1965) is an English writer and journalist.

She won the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-fiction in 2008 with The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House and won a Somerset Maugham Award in 1998 (and was shortlisted for the 1997 Whitbread Awards for biography) for the bestselling The Queen of Whale Cay, about Joe Carstairs, "fastest woman on water."

As a journalist, she worked for The Independent and The Daily Telegraph and her articles have appeared in The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph. She stumbled on the story for The Suspicions of Mr Whicher in an 1890s anthology of unsolved crime stories and became so fascinated that she left her post as literary editor of The Daily Telegraph to pursue her investigations. She spent a year researching the book and another year writing it.

She has also judged various literary competitions including the Booker Prize in 2001.

Reviews

[Claudia · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was an interesting read, but due to its format, felt like reading an encyclopedia.

The numerous (who would have thought there are so many?!) phobias and manias are listed in alphabetical order, some more elaborate than others, some exemplified with humorous or sad real life medical cases.

I think it will work better reading just a few every few days.

[BAM doesn’t answer to her real name · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A phobia was a suppressed fear displaced onto an external object: both an expression of anxiety and a defence against it"- Freud


Y'all know what might be fun and exciting???? What if as I read I just make this review a list of all of the phobias and mania's I have! I have written bunches of personal information in previous reviews so I think this might be an eye opener for some of our reading audience just to take a peak at what it means to have severe anxiety and poor impulse control along with constant dual cycling mood swings.
HERE WE GO!!!!

Ok so let's just start with the most absurd phobia (and one I do not have) just to get into the mood:
Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia: the fear of long words I see a ton of etymological references in that word no clue why they were picked. I love big words and I cannot lie so that's out of the way.

The book is divided by the alphabet. I find that a tad disappointing because I would have liked them separated by category like in the introduction. That would have been much more helpful.
1. ABOULOMANIA- continually doubting the validity or correctness of anything done in the course of daily duties. This happens to me at work EVERY SINGLE DAY. I switched from one pharmacy where I entered up to >600 scripts a day to a sister company with completely different dynamics and I'm lucky to enter 10 now all because of the difference in order reception and my constant fear of making a mistake while being told in this pharmacy you are our third shift work horse. Do any of you know how that makes one react? It's god awful
2. Acrophobia-fear of heights even in a completely enclosed space I will not walk up to the edge of the carpet to the window. It reminds me of the scene in ferris buehler when they all are on a ledge with their faces stuck to the glass. Also ladders even a three step I cannot climb. Or disembarking from a boat
3. AGORAPHOBIA- this is the big nasty! Coined in 1871my version is the fear of leaving home actually getting into my car and going anywhere. Since Covid I have not been in a mall, grocery store, bookshop, etc. it's to work then back home with the exact same rout.
Bonus phobia: arithmomania-the desire to count or preoccupation with math "but this one goes to 11"
4. BEATLEMANIA: yes that's in the book. Although it typically comprises those teeny bloopers from the '60s it can also include the criers. I am that crier. That is all.
5.BIBLIOMANIA-I was once on here as the bibliomaniac. I got bored. I changed it. Yes I do believe I buy at least one book a day because obviously I'll be able to read all of those before I die
bonus phobia: coulrophobia-fear of clowns yes invented in the 1980-1990s
Yes, Johnny depp has this fear
7. CYNOPHOBIA-fear of dogs I am so afraid of big dogs I will avoid friends’ houses
8. ENTOMOPHOBIA-fear of insects I cannot do ants an army of ants will put me in flight
Bonus phobia: ergo phobia- fear of working 100% of us have that
9. GERASCOPHOBIA- fear of growing old “no more adulting thank you” my pharmacy director will stare at my face and say as if in awe”you don’t have any wrinkles just the tiny ones by your eyes you don’t even have them on your forehead” I’m 50 years fabulous. Also I keep telling my daughter to lie about her age so when I lie about mine it makes sense
Bonus phobia: koumpounophobia-fear of buttons Steve Jobs had this couldn’t stand keyboards and dress shirts
10. NYCTOPHOBIA-fear of the dark which is probably ironic because I work third shift this really only occurs inside houses not outside unless there is some Blair witch project going on I never turn the lights off even when I am not here, maybe more especially when I’m not here.
11. ONIOMANIA-SHOPPING! This is huge for me and a big sign when I’ve had a mood swing high. I’ve had this mania since I was in college in the 90’s. I would sneak packages into my house and hide them on the floor behind my bed. I wash new purchases ASAP so I can’t return them. I buy at least one book a day. I am almost certain that in the early 00’s when I worked at Victoria’s Secret I spent a total of close to $1000 in purchases during a semi annual sale. I am not proud of this. I am on medication but if anything changes my routine, if I feel confused, stressed, impulsive shopping is what I will do to try to balance myself again. I will also become quite delusional when this occurs.
BONUS: social phobia is actually a thing but it’s just called anxiety
OKAY! So that looks like it according to this book. If I knew how people on here post memes and tiny film clips I would have done that for you, but I don’t so I can’t. This was an enlightening project. I didn’t have as many as I thought, but still enough to make me avoid social situations as well as drive my management team up a wall with my constant emails telling them that how new hires are not doing things correctly just let me train them like I used to.
I triple dog dare you to read this book and list your fears and impulsivities. It really made me think 🤔 I also know I will definitely be on medication for the rest of my life.
CHEERS!

[Johann (jobis89) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A fun and informative read! Makes me feel less strange about my weird phobias!

[Sheree | Keeping Up With The Penguins · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book of Phobias and Manias is a really interesting read – though you might have to resist the urge to start pathologising every inclination or distaste once you’ve read it. Recent estimates suggest that only 1 in 8 people with a phobia seek help, so I think it was really great of Summerscale to wisely include many comforting examples of people who have undertaken treatment with great success.

My full review of The Book Of Phobias And Manias is up now on Keeping Up With The Penguins.

[Jolanta (knygupė) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nuo A iki Z apžvelgiamos 99 fobijos ir manijos. Plačiau nei wikipedia, tačiau man pritrūko gilesnių įžvalgų. Kai kurie apsėdimai pristatyti tik keliais sakiniais, kai kuriems nepagailėta ir išgijimo pavyzdžių. Bet visumoje - per daug žinyniška man. Tiesiog ne tai ko tikėjausi.

2,6*

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 3 out of 5]

“We are all driven by our fears and desires, and sometimes we are in thrall of them.”

The Book of Phobias and Manias by Kate Summerscale is an interesting compendium identifying familiar and obscure fears and obsessions that afflict humankind.

Personally, I don’t care much for heights (acrophobia) though I’m fine if I’m in a fully enclosed area like a building or a plane. I am also afraid of sharks (galeophobia) and by extension I don’t like being in deep water (thalassophobia). My fears aren’t quite severe enough to warrant diagnosis as a phobia though.

A phobia is a persistent, overwhelming and debilitating fear, often with irrational cause. For the purposes of diagnosis, that fear must interfere with normal functioning. In her introduction, Summerscale discusses how some fears are considered to have a evolutionary purpose, a reflex to protect us from external threats, like snakes (Ophidiophobia) for example. Others may be a result of personal experience, for example someone may develop a fear of dogs (cynophobia) after being bitten by one; or cultural conditioning, like the fear of being without a mobile phone (nomophobia). Some fears, like most mania’s, may be related to chemical imbalances in the brain. A mania is often an overwhelming compulsion to do something, like stealing (kleptomania) or oniomania (shopping). A mania may also stem from a delusion, such as the false belief that one is desired (erotomania), and can affect clusters of people.

The entries in The Book of Phobias and Manias are arranged alphabetically, from Ablutophobia to Zoophobia. The length of each varies but in most instances Summerscale defines the phobia, or mania, and offers some historical, cultural and scientific context as well as an anecdote or case study. I found the entries to be very readable and the language is accessible, but there is some repetition that is noticeable if you read through the book in one sitting. Summerscale’s research seems to be sound, though Freud was cited uncomfortably often. The sources she provides are quite extensive and a good source of further reading.

As an introduction to phobias and manias, The Book of Phobias and Manias could be a good resource. I found it to be entertaining and interesting.

[Jo_Scho_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an utterly fascinating book! This is essentially an A-Z of all the neuroses in the world. Yes there are plenty of us scared of spiders (arachnophobia) and heights (acrophobia) but have you ever heard of phonophobia (fear of noises), trypophobia (fear of holes) and even koumpounophobia (fear of buttons)? Nope, me neither, but they’re all here.

And then let’s not forget about the mania - we all remember beatlemania in the 60s bit what about oniomania (shopping), nymphomania (sex), plutomania (riches) and of course something we could all identify with - bibliomania (books)!

This handy sized book covers them all, it was enlightening and very eye opening. What I especially loved was the wealth of research that was clearly done to create this encyclopaedic compendium - each phobia or mania gives examples in history of each affliction, which was utterly fascinating to read about.

I learnt about a lady in 1906 who had plucked and eaten the majority of hair from her head (trichotillomania), how nineteenth century citizens were so fearful of being buried alive (taphephobia) that a bell rope or hammer would be fed into each coffin, oh and then there was the dreadful experiment that was cast upon poor little Albert B, to see if psychologists Watson & Rayner could make a baby fear white rats (doraphobia). That’s just the tip of the iceberg here!

A brilliantly unique and informative book to leave on your bedside table and dip in and out of, which could hopefully make you feel better about any of your own neuroses - unless you have a morbid fear of hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia (long words) - cause then I reckon you’re doomed!

[Makmild · Rating 3 out of 5]

ต้องบอกตามตรงเลยว่า จริงๆ เราคาดหวังกับเล่มนี้มากเลย แบบตอนออกมาใหม่ๆ คืออยากอ่านมากๆๆๆ แบบ โหโฟเบีย มาเนียเนี่ยเป็นอะไรที่เราได้ยินมานานแต่ไม่ค่อยได้รู้จักจริงๆ จังๆ แบบอาการมันเป็นยังไง เรามีอาการโฟเบียหรือมาเนียบางอย่างมั่งหรือเปล่า (เช่น Bibliomania โรคซื้อหนังสือมาดอง เป็นต้น) แต่ผลปรากฏว่ามันดันออกมาตรงข้ามกับที่หวังเอาไว้ และในแง่หนึ่งมันก็ให้มากกว่าที่เราหวังไว้ด้วยเช่นกัน

สิ่งทีหวังคือ ดีปๆ เลยคับนาย อาการมันเป็นยังไงคับ มันส่งผลต่อสมองอย่างไร งานวิจัยเน้นๆ มาได้เลยคับ
สิ่งที่ได้ คือ ไม่มีคับ ดีปๆ ไม่มี เพราะเป็นหนังสือรวบรวมมาเนีย โฟเบียจำนวน 99 ชนิดเอาไว้ โดยแต่ละชนิดก็จะบอก 1) กลุ่มลักษณะของการ 2) ประวัติของอาการ และกลุ่มตัวอย่าง 3) ตัวอย่างการรักษา ซึ่งข้อสามก็แล้วแต่ว่าชนิดนั้นๆ ไม่ได้มีมีบอกตัวอย่างการรักษาทุก 99 ชนิด เพราะงั้น สิ่งที่เราได้จึงไม่ใช่การได้เข้าใจเชิงลึกและจิตวิทยาแต่ละโรคว่าเกิดขึ้นได้อย่างไร กลุ่มทางจิตวิทยารักษาแบบไหน แล้วกลุ่มรักษาโรค (ไม่รู้จะเรียกว่าไงที่เป็นเชิงกายภาพ) มีการรักษาแบบไหน แต่เป็นความเข้าใจรวมๆ ว่า ชนิดโฟเบียมาเนียแต่ละอย่าง บางอันก็ไม่ใช่โรค

เนื่องจากในไทยจะแปลคำนี้ว่า "โรค" (เศร้า แต่ก็เข้าใจได้) คือพอมันเป็น "โรค" มันก็ต้องรักษาเนอะ แต่จริงๆ เราว่าบางกลุ่มอาการในเล่มบางอย่างถ้ามันไม่ได้ส่งผลกระทบต่อชีวิตประจำวันก็เป็นเรื่องปกติที่เข้าใจได้ แต่ถ้าหนักมากๆ ก็ต้องไปรักษา และปมแต่ละอย่างที่เกิดขึ้นก็มีลักษณะวิธีการรักษาที่แตกต่างกัน ในเล่มมักจะยกฟรอยด์และปมอิดีปุส (ฟรอยด์มีปมเรื่องแม่ และเซ็กส์หรอ เรายังไม่เคยอ่านงานฟรอยด์หรือชีวิตประวัติของจิตแพทย์คนนี้) และเล่าประวัติศาสตร์การรักษาแบบแปลกๆ ที่แบบ เอ้า อันนี้รักษาหรือสร้างโรคทางจิตเพิ่มกันแน่หืม

โดยรวมแล้ว ถ้าถามเราว่าอ่านเล่มนี้บันเทิงมั้ย ก็เออ เรื่อยๆ ไม่ได้เข้มข้นอะไรมากนัก แต่เป็นเหมือนสารุกรม wikihow ที่มีติดไว้ที่บ้านได้ คืออ่านปั่นๆ อะ ดีเลย

[Óscar Moreno (OscarBooker) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Éste sin duda es un libro fascinante que debe pasar por tus manos en algún momento.

Debo aclarar que es un libro de consulta, tal y como un diccionario o enciclopedia, del cual aprenderás muchísimo. Yo justamente lo consultaba poco a poco y lo disfruté mucho.

Claramente no me aprendí el nombre de todas las fobias y manías, pero si aprendí cosas súper fascinantes como que hay gente que te tiene fobia a los huevos (ovofobia) o al número cuatro (tetrafobia).

Te lo recomiendo bastante.

[Felix · Rating 4 out of 5]

jedes buch das freud als den huso darstellt der er war ist ein gutes buch 👏🏼

[Reading With Ghosty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a huge nonfiction reader but I loved this! It was really interesting to learn about different phobias and manias. From how they were discovered, the psychology behind it, physical reactions people may have and peoples' personal bouts. A few hit home to me and it's always a relief knowing you're not alone in that.

Would recommend.

[Mo]

"Vertigo is not the fear of falling, but a fear of the desire to fall."

This book includes many phobias and manias from the most known (such as pyromania - the compulsion to set fires), to the most unheard of (such as aboulomania - being seized by indecision).

It can be funny (or at times sad) to recognize yourself or other people in many of the fears mentioned. Speaking for myself, I could say I am:
- Acrophobic (I get physical tingling sensations when looking down from high buildings but also even when thinking about myself in that situation)
- Cynophobic (afraid of dogs)
- Nyctophobic (afraid of the dark)
- Arachnophobic (afraid of spiders)
- A trichotillomaniac (skin-picker)

Summerscale mentions how many patients were healed from those conditions, which is both interesting and reassuring! Quite striking how most fears can be overcome with either exposure therapy, learning more about something (since ignorance can be a cause of many phobias), or both. The most fascinating to me how some fears can be explained evolutionarily or through traumas / upbringing.

I learned that anxiety is often not based on the chances of an event happening, but on how little control you have over it ('a surrender of personal agency') --> comparing car crashes to airplane crashes for example. I also learned that many people see their anxiety as a 'talisman': anxiety keeps the plane in the air / the minute you grow overconfident, something bad happens. Also, talking about how irrational a fear is never helps, because people know that already (this wasn't new to me though).

I agree with other readers that it was 'more like reading an encyclopedia' than a regular book. But I guess it's always a trade-off between learning a little about a lot or a lot about a little. It could serve as a starting point after which you'd read a book on one of the topics.

[Edan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Trin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fairly dull and shallow. The encyclopedia-like format means there are redundancies between entries, plus, nothing is explored at particular depth, and there's a lot of just repeating the results of various psychological studies (classically without flaw) and the theories of men like Freud without question or analysis. Plus the discomfort of homophobia and xenophobia lumped in with mental illnesses. Not recommended.

[nuggi. · Rating 5 out of 5]

In meinen Augen ein sehr gelungenes Buch dem Leser einen Überblick über diverse Phobien und Manien zu geben. Ich habe die Erzählungen über den Verlauf der Symptome und möglicher Behandlungen gern verfolgt. Mein Allgemeinwissen hat sich gerade in dem Bereich sehr erweitert und ich bin teils sehr fasziniert, teils schockiert welchen psychischen Zuständen man vor 200 oder 300 Jahren Beachtung geschenkt hat und auf welche Art man es getan hat. Das ab und an auch keine "ernsten" Phobien oder Manien vorgestellt wurden, wie zum Beispiel die Furcht vor langen Wörtern (bei dem der Begriff selbst ein langes Wort ist), fand ich auch gut. Auch das Einbeziehen von Fakten und Meinungen bekannter (oder nicht so bekannter) Ärzten wurde sehr gut dargestellt, da viele Aussagen kritisch betrachtet wurden und meist gegenteilige Aussagen auch erwähnt wurden. So konnte man sich als Leser ein eigenes Bild erstellen und es am Ende mit dem vergleichen auf das sich die Gesellschaft über all die Jahre geeinigt hat.
Die Aufmachung vom Buch durch die Bindung und der Goldfolierung ist wahnsinnig hübsch und die kleinen Bilder liefern noch dazu eine schöne Veranschaulichung mancher Ängste!
Das Buch ist auf jeden Fall eine Empfehlung von mir. Vor allem wenn man im Bereich der Psychologie nicht so erfahren ist aber gern sein Wissen darin erweitern möchte!

[Cheesecat777 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting book. Was really good, and sometimes this book would drop some cursed information, including the syllogomania chapter, where two brothers, one of them blind, hoarded so much stuff that the non blind one died from being crushed under the amount of stuff, and the other died from starvation because his brother was the one feeding him. And then of course... Freud. I don't agree with a lot of his conclusions, but he makes the book more entertaining.

[Aom Ruka · Rating 4 out of 5]

ตอนแรกๆที่อ่าน รู้สึกตื่นเต้นมากๆ เพราะแปลกประหลาดล้ำลึก มีความกลัวแปลกๆเต็มไปหมด เล่าเรื่องเคสได้สนุก น่าสนใจ

แต่พออ่านไปซักพัก ก็เริ่มไม่น่าตื่นเต้นละ แบบบางเคสก็แค่ 7 บรรทัดจบ เหมือนว่า ก็มีนะ แต่ไม่มีรายละเอียดอะไรเลย พูดๆ จบๆไป

[zbookami · Rating 3 out of 5]

nic specjalnego:/

[Tanith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this could have been longer! I liked the phobias that had a lot of the history behind them as well. The ones that just had a sentence or two seemed kind of pointless.

[•°~*° dawn ❀ · Rating 5 out of 5]

kapot interessant

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A listacle book yet also a useful reference.

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a weirdly fun book, by Kate Summerscale. I read her book, 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒖𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒓. 𝑾𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒓, also a nonfiction, about a real murder case that ruined the reputation of a famous Victorian detective. It was made into a movie, actually three of them, that I watched and liked. But I digress.

This book is exactly what it says it is - all about phobias and manias. It's what I call a hop around book in that you don't have to read it in page order. You will know about many of them, but many weird ones are here like Bambakomallophobia, fear of cotton wool, as in cotton balls. Then there's Ergophobia, the fear of work. About half of Americans seem to have this one nowadays! 😏

Regardless of my humor, or should I say sarcasm, this is not a tongue in cheek book, but a concise explanation of phobias and manias both common and uncommon. I suspect, like me, you will find many you've never heard of and maybe one you have. I'll confess to a terrible case of Arachnophobia, so much so I could barely read the page because it had an illustration of a spider on it! I also had Beatlemania when I was 13, but then again half the teenagers in the world also had it!

There's a nice introduction and a very helpful A-Z section of the phobias and manias, and an alphabetical section of sources, by phobias and manias in the back in case you want to read more in depth about a particular one. All in all I'm having a lot of fun skipping around, and learning about the fears some of us have, and glad I have only three of them!

[Elvenenilector · Rating 4 out of 5]

•Esta completa obra consta de 312 páginas donde la autora recoge a modo de “diccionario” diferentes fobias y manías( un total de 99 aproximadamente)poniéndole así nombre a todo lo q nos asusta y obsesiona.
•Todas ellas están ordenadas alfabéticamente y en cada término describiremos su nombre,definición clara y concisa y también datos y casos científicos reales bastante curiosos e interesantes(muchos de ellos se remontan a diferentes siglos)de pacientes q las han padecido y cómo han podido o no superarlas.
•La edición es sencilla pero muy completa, de tapa dura como nos tiene acostumbrad@s esta editorial.
•En primer lugar nos encontraremos con un índice de nos llevará a las páginas de cada una de las fobias y las manías q contiene el libro,una introducción y un apartado de cómo usar el atlas,donde la autora las agrupará según la relación q posean entre sí( animales,texturas,comidas y bebidas,números etc.). Se nota q la autora ha hecho una gran labor de investigación sobre el tema q trata.
•Cada definición viene acompañada de dibujos en blanco y negro estilo carboncillo.
•Me ha resultado una lectura bastante completa y diferente,me ha servido para poner nombre a muchos miedos y para conocer otros q hasta ahora eran desconocidos para mí.

[SusyG · Rating 4 out of 5]

È un libro carino e particolare! L'autrice raccoglie un tot di fobie e di manie, raccontando quando sono state segnalate per la prima volta, come sono state studiate, se sono state superate... Ci sono molte curiosità che mi sono piaciute! Poi ci ho pure trovato la mia di fobia 🚀 l'unica pecca forse è che è un po' noioso essendo un semplice elenco, non c'è una narrazione come in altri saggi, forse quell'aspetto può un po' far arricciare il naso. Però se vi piacciono questi argomenti un po' diversi dal solito, ve lo consiglio! 👀

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super interesting and informative but I had to quit about halfway through b/c I was starting to self diagnose myself with every other phobia/mania. I have enough of those already, I don't need made up ones too.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and well organized. Quite a bit of repetition.

[Bluebelle-the-Inquisitive (Catherine) · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are all driven by our fears and desires, and sometimes we are in thrall to them. — Introduction

Warnings: This is a book that deals with history and psychology, both treatment and research in the past could be distressing to a modern reader. It does ask the reader to open their mind to the other as well.

It was the cover of The Book of Phobias & Manias that caught my attention. I think it has really pretty colouring and I like the inclusion of a spider, one of the world's most prolific phobias. I picked this up in the bargin book section of bookshop, without this cover I never would have picked it up. I really do prefer this one to the alternate. The concept of looking at history through something of a psychological discussion appeals to me.

I like how Kate Summerscale has written The Book of Phobias & Manias it is easily readable if a reader wants to sit and read end to end. Or it can be used a in a bit more of a reference guide way. Each entry contains at some point the basic origins of the word (with some exceptions) and at least one example of the condition. There is a pleasing design element, illustrations by James Alexander maybe with Nathan Burton. I think, it is to Kate Summerscale's discredit that she doesn't give them what I would consider proper credit. Because those illustrations while small appear on over three quarters of the entries and increase the books appeal.

As is the norm for non-fiction book this does have a contents, an index and sources. The contents is the same as the layout of the book, alphabetical by formal name, with obsession in parentheses. The index is one page of phobias and one of manias but is organised by obsession. There are sources for each of the entries, they are sorted into their own section and by entry, for ease of access and flow of reading.

If you are someone with an interest in what makes people tick and appreciate seeing history through a different lens, this might be a good read for you. Join me rolling my eyes at Freud and his followers (seriously is there anything you can't tie to sex?), getting seriously concerned at what our forbares called research (or treatment for that matter) and just getting an idea of how some others see the world.

These books were not for reading but for viewing, items removed from circulation, locked away like women in a harem. They were put on tantalising display: exuding the scent of flesh, tooled in gold, sensual and desirable but closed and unknowable. — Bibliomania (in relation to private libraries around the turn of the 19th century, an interpretation of Isaac D'Israeli's thoughts on them)

A representative gif:

I gve you Count von Count, of Seasame Street fame, included because the Count has a mania. Like the internet's favourite inventor, Nikolai Tesla, he has arithmomania.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Phobias are intense fears that people often experience in regards to specific things or situations. A lot of the times, those fears are irrational. I personally have an intense, irrational fear and disgust in regards to whales. People who come into contact with some trigger are often sent into a state of panic. Manias are episodes of high excitement and energy that last for a prolonged period of time. I was less familiar with manias than phobias, so this book was a nice teaching tool for me in that respect. Both phobias and manias are common issues for a lot of people, and are treated frequently by mental health professionals.

I have read a couple of Kate Summerscale's books, and I have enjoyed and learned from every one of them. I was really looking forward to this one releasing. I typically enjoy books about different mental health issues, and, having had a few psychology classes before I switched majors, I read about several of the phobias mentioned. I liked that the overview of each one was brief, yet informative. I didn't want to waste a bunch of time on the ones that I was familiar with, but I did appreciate the refresher course. I very much enjoyed learning about the ones I had never heard of. I am pleased with this purchase. The cover art is also very nice.

[Leah K · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title, The Book of Phobias and Manias, is exactly what it sounds like. A book on phobias and manias. Like, not all of them or the book would be way bigger. But it reads in alphabetical order on some of the more common or odd phobias and manias. She does have a nice index on ways to read it other ways besides alphabetical (such as by subject) but I just went in order. There was a lot of interesting tidbits, like how phobias often get their names (spoiler alert, Latin or Greek words usually) and the psychology behind some of them (spoiler alert, often a mental illness or earlier trauma. Unless Freud is involved, then the answer is obviously because of sex). I found it interesting, well-researched, and entertaining.

[Denisa Šejdová · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75

This book is a bit hard for me to rate, my main problem with it being the format itself - it goes through different phobias and manias in alphabetical order, with some entries only half a page long and others up to six pages. This idea is very unique and interesting, but it didn't really grab me from the start, and I had trouble finding a good reading flow.

Some chapters were really engaging and packed with fascinating info, but others didn’t hold my attention as much. I often found myself drifting off while reading certain parts.

I regret not annotating from the beginning. This book feels perfect for it, and I think I’d enjoy it more if I came back to it with that in mind.