Sure, everyone gets sick sometimes, but do you realize that plenty of those folks also die slow, unpleasant deaths from diseases that stumped even the experts at top-notch (still privately run) hospitals? That's right: There are plenty of illnesses that even physicians have never heard about. Nodding Disease, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, and Cutaneous Horn (yes, you grow a horn) are all featured here in pithy, energetic entries. You won't have to worry about socialized medicine if you have this book—even if your doc could see you within a month, you might die due to his ignorance. Lucky for you and your loved ones, Ian Landau (who has no medical training but is a hell of a researcher) includes:

Descriptions of each disease

Background and history

How to diagnose yourself and others

Suggested treatments

Prevention methods

The book is not for the faint of heart, as it probably could cause cardiac arrest. (And you ain't coming back from that without Ian's help.)