Beethoven's extraordinary ability to compose great music despite severe health problems, including deafness and depression, has puzzled and inspired. In Diagnosing Genius Franois Martin Mai looks at the relationship between Beethoven's health and creativity to show how the composer was able to transcend physical and emotional torment to produce some of the most powerful and beautiful music in Western culture. Mai's experience as a physician and psychiatrist serves as a basis for his analysis. Working from the symptoms described in the medical evidence, Beethoven's letters and those of his...