The Human Mind

Are you a human? Do you have a mind? Then this book is for you: a wonderfully entertaining overview of all of psychology by one of its greatest experts.


Nothing is more familiar and yet less understood than the human mind. It defines the experience of being human, and yet its workings contain some of the deepest mysteries ever encountered. Written by one of the world's greatest teachers of psychology, The Human Mind provides a masterful and riveting guide to all that we have learned since modern science began probing those mysteries. It will illuminate everything you think and feel, everything you say and do, everything that makes you you.

Review

An extraordinary book that absolutely delivers on its sweeping ambitions. Every chapter here - on topics ranging from Freud to the mysteries of consciousness, from intergroup conflict to the meaning of life - feels like having the mind's complexities untangled by a witty, eloquent and deeply knowledgeable friend

Essential reading for anyone who has wondered why people do, feel, and think what they do. Paul Bloom is that rarest of experts - able to tell a story, make it practical, and yet faithfully capture the complexity and nuance of the latest research -- ANGELA DUCKWORTH, author of Grit

This book is a gem. Insightful, accessible, witty and provocative in the best sense, it presents state-of-the art science and its controversies in an even-handed manner. A wonderfulbook, whether for a newcomer or a specialist who has studied one tree so long that the forest has been forgotten -- ROBERT SAPOLSKY, author of Behave

I don't remember the last time I was this excited about a psychology-related book. The Human Mind is everything a reader wants. Enlightening, thoroughly researched, and witty too. Paul Bloom knows his stuff and has a way of sharing that will delight you. I wish psychology was always taught in this way -- SOPHIE MORT (aka Dr Soph), author of A Manual For Being Human

Paul Bloom can always be counted on to take your confident assumptions about humanity and turn them upside down -- SUSAN CAIN, author of Quiet

Really wonderful, hugely readable -- DERREN BROWN (on Twitter)

Explains the deep and lasting insights from the science of the mind ... such a pleasure to read -- STEVEN PINKER, author of Enlightenment Now

Bloom asks the big, thought-provoking questions, and his passion and enthusiasm for his line of work are evident on every page ... [The Human Mind] is a success at giving readers a taste of their own minds ... Readers will learn a lot about themselves ― Washington Examiner

A perfect testament to why understanding the puzzles of the mind can be so damn fun -- LAURIE SANTOS, host of The Happiness Lab podcast

Perhaps the wittiest, most captivating overview of the field of psychology to date -- JENNIFER SENIOR, author of All Joy and No Fun

The story of the human mind as told by psychology's best storyteller ... a fantastic journey -- DANIEL GILBERT, author of Stumbling on Happiness

Powerful ... The Human Mind is a sane corrective in an increasingly crazed world ― Prospect

An ambitious, up-to-the-minute guide to the mind ... From perception and behaviour to choice and morality, psychologist Paul Bloom's book on the mind takes on a comprehensive journey of what it means to be human -- Simon Ings ― New Scientist

Excellent ... [Bloom's] stories are sometimes surprising and made me laugh out loud ... a very enjoyable read ― The Conversation

About the Author

Paul Bloom is Professor of Psychology at University of Toronto and the Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Yale University. His research explores the psychology of morality, identity and pleasure. Bloom is the recipient of multiple awards and honours, including most recently the million-dollar Klaus J. Jacobs Research Prize. He has written for scientific journals such as Nature and Science, and for the New York Times, New Yorker, Atlantic and Guardian. He is the author or editor of eight books, including Just Babies, How Pleasure Works, Descartes' Baby, Against Empathy and most recently The Sweet Spot.