This book is an interesting change from others on the topic of depression. Its focus on the biology of the brain and its complexities provides a different kind of insight into this condition. If you’ve ever wondered if what you eat really affects the way you feel and act, this book will convince you. The images of the brains showing different imbalances are convincing and Amen’s very scientific discussions of using herbal, dietary, or medicinal means to actually change your brain are fascinating.

Unfortunately, the book is so scientific that it may not be right for the average reader. Some of Amen’s theories and techniques are WAY outside the realm of commonly-accepted practice and if you do not have enough information to critically evaluate his ideas, you really shouldn’t be reading the book. For the majority of people, it just presents some pictures of the brain and some interesting theories that they won’t understand.

About halfway through the book I got the feeling that Amen was just trying to convince people to buy his theories, the SPECT in particular. Unless you have severe brain issues and a solid understanding of biology, this book is not for you.

The book is engaging, informative, and most importantly, it offers a great deal of hope. It breaks new ground, and it allows the layman to make better sense of the complexities of brain biology, personality, and behavior. To those few reviewers who insisted that Amen does not actually tell us "how to change your brain" - this is simply not true. Amen offers a variety of options including traditional meds, (even a nice chart to help with the benefits of each), and alternative treatments such as herbal and dietary suggestions. Though the title is a little silly, it is appropriate. This book actually shows you pictures of brains with different emotional/chemical imbalances. Give it to anyone who questions whether diet or medication really affects their feelings and relationships. Many people believe that medication is for weak people and that they should be able to conquer their problems through sheer will. This book gives indisputable evidence that problems like depression, aggression, ADD and Alzheimer’s are physically based. The changes in patients' brains before and after treatment (often, but not always medication-based) are phenomenal. It demonstrates with the SPECT series brain scans that our brain chemistry rules our emotions. Amen is very clear that he always uses talk therapy and teaching communication skills before he contemplates having a SPECT series done. His point is that many people can benefit from learning new skills and ways of looking at life, but some are truly stuck because their brain activity keeps them looping on negative thoughts, reacting with extreme anger, obsessing about limited situations, or shutting down when they try to concentrate. When medication is used these patients can finally put the communication and coping skills they have learned to good use.