Reading without the left ventral occipito-temporal cortex

► Word reading can succeed after damage to the left occipito-temporal cortex. ► This is enabled by an alternative pathway via the left superior temporal sulcus. ► Connectivity analysis demonstrated the existence of this pathway in normal readers. ► We hypothesise that this pathway integrates semantics with phonology. ► Our work stresses the importance of mapping alternative degenerate reading pathways.