Non-conscious vs Conscious Control
Michael S. Gazzaniga: Who's in Charge?
This is truly an amazing book based on split brain patient studies that offers true evidenced-based research into the depth and importance of non-conscious process and impact on our global functioning. Don’t read this if you want to maintain a strict cognitive behavioral approach to your clinical work!
Robert Sapolsky: Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
Great book on non-consciousness processing and the human condition
Similar theme regarding unconscious processing based on providing copious and fascinating examples that will amaze you and question your understanding of yourself, the world, and your clinical work.
Timothy D. Wilson: Strangers to Ourselves
Similar to the above.
Daniel Kahneman: Thinking, Fast and Slow
This is long and at times tedious but sprinkled with valuable insights you will get nowhere else. Nice, simple application of stats to clinical work that ALL clinicians need to understand!
Christopher Chabris, Daniel Simons: The Invisible Gorilla: And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us
Similar to the above, fun read
Stanislas Dehaene: Consciousness and the Brain: Deciphering How the Brain Codes Our Thoughts
Similar to the above.
Antonio Damasio: Self Comes to Mind
Mixed reviews but good insight into emotions and empathy
Antonio Damasio: Descartes’s Error
Old but still has a wealth of valuable knowledge on understanding emotions
Not strictly neuroscience but the effects of microorganism can be quite powerful, especially toxoplasmosis!
Dean Burnett: Idiot Brain: What Your Head Is Really up To
Entertaining review of non-conscious processing and its impact on our daily lives by a neuroscientist
Stress & trauma
Somewhat older but you really, really need to read this book if you want to understand your anxious or traumatized patients.
You want to work with an adult, child, or anyone with a serious trauma history? Please read this book. Traumatizing and sad cases but an excellent read from a skilled, knowledgeable, and thoughtful clinician. Helpful insights, although old enough to be weak on neuroscience; read it with this in mind an your clinical work will greatly benefit!
Accessible neuroscience perspective on anxiety
Good primer of the influence of hormones on our actions, behaviors, thoughts, and emotions
Robert Sapolsky: Stress and Your Body
Entertaining audiobook lectures on stress and impact on brain and behavior
Van der Kolk: The body keeps the score: brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma
Compassionate introduction to trauma but unfortunately contains too many propositions that cannot be supported by science, such as mirror neurons, efficacy of EMDR, and some aspects of body work
Mirror Neurons!
Gregory Hickok: The Myth of Mirror Neurons: The Real Neuroscience of Communication and Cognition
Good, but as the author specializes in language, research presented is more in that area and less in clinical findings. Nonetheless, has good information and the beginning of the book is strong.
The Neglected Brain
If you really want to learn about the whole brain, you really should read this book. More emphasis on neurological functioning and pathology than clinical work however.
Stephen Kosslyn, G. Wayne Miller: Top Brain, Bottom Brain
Nice approach to understanding the brain and highlights the simplicity of left brain-right brain conceptualization. Very useful, yet stretches the top-bottom brain hypothesis that, although useful, does not fully explain brain functioning from my clinical experience with both neurologically compromised and neurologically intact patients.
Criminal Forensics & the Roots of Empathy
Adrian Raine: The Anatomy of Violence: The Biological Roots of Crime
Interesting and useful, especially if you have any interest in forensic work. Also provides a good overview of limbic-frontal brain areas that will teach you much about how empathy really works.
Robert D. Hare: Without Conscience
Also a must read if you have an interest in criminal forensic work. A good read as well.
Simon Baron-Cohen: The Science of Evil
This book is primarily about empathy. The cousin of Borat, he is a Cambridge professor and an expert in Autism research. Highlight: he offers a reasonable explanation of mirror neurons (although still off base when you understand brain functioning and apply double dissociation studies).
Philip Zimbardo The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil
Interested in how vulnerable you are to pressure and context? How far we can be led to deviate from who we believe we are? This book covers the Stanford Prison Experiment, Abu Ghraib, and Gitmo. Solid social psych text that is also a good read.
ADHD
Dr. Thomas Brown: Attention Deficit Disorder: The Unfocused Mind in Children and Adults
A must, must read if you are going to diagnose or work with individuals whom may have ADHD; seriously, read this book. Be aware that he states early in the book that medication alone is the best treatment for ADHD, then devotes the remaining book to supporting the need for psychotherapy!
Great for parents!
Dr. Russel Berkeley: Taking Charge of Adult ADHD
Great for adults!
Dr. Russel Berkeley: Managing ADHD in School: The Best Evidence-Based Methods for Teachers
Great for teachers!
Learning Disabilities
Maryanne Wolf: Proust and the Squid
A good read and a must read if you have or work with individuals with learning disabilities
Sally Shaywitz, M.D.: Overcoming Dyslexia
A must read if you have or work with individuals with learning disabilities, good overview of interventions
Development
Frances Jensen: The Teenage Brain
Good review of differences in brain functioning in adolescents
Sleep
Excellent review of the importance of sleep and establishing healthy sleep hygiene, should be required reading!
Memory
Julia Shaw: The memory illusion
Fallibility and malleability of our memory!
Entertaining Neurosurgery Memoir
Frank Vertosick: When the air hits your brain
Interesting memoir and fun take on neurosurgery.