Mind Medicine

Geller, best known for bending spoons and reading minds, turns his attention to human health in this large, lavishly produced book. He begins with a panoramic overview of healing through the ages, then moves on to chapters that discuss the mind's role in optimum health. Throughout, Geller emphasizes the power of positive attitudes and activities, especially meditation, to create well-being and to battle fear, worry, self-doubt and stress. A series of quizzes and guided meditations help readers identify their self-defeating habits, while appendixes offer brief guides to alternative therapies and major medicine groups. Geller's refusal to use his abilities merely ""to help the world's silverware manufacturers through economic slumps"" is admirable, as is his modesty: aside from a brief review of scientific testimonies to his feats, the book barely references either Geller's putative special powers or his remarkable life. Nor is its conclusion--that true healing requires attention to mental, emotional, spiritual and physical energy--novel or dramatic. Unfortunately, this basic, commonsense approach is also the book's chief weakness: its information and suggestions are far too general and familiar to add meaningfully to the vast existing literature on the mind-body relationship. The scores of full-color illustrations are attractive, but add little to the volume's usefulness. (Oct.)