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Ratings: ★★★★★ (5/5)
Genre: Neuroscience, Psychology, Popular Science, Self-Help

Book Review:
''Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain: A Slim but Potent Guide to Our Most Powerful Organ''

Lisa Feldman Barrett's ''Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain'' is a delightful and eye-opening book that will change the way you think about your own mind. In just over 100 pages, Barrett, a renowned neuroscientist, distills the latest research into seven concise and engaging lessons, each one challenging a common myth or misconception about the brain.

The book is designed to be accessible and entertaining, the kind of neuroscience book you could read on the beach. But don't let its slim size fool you. It is packed with insights that will unsettle your assumptions and turn your world upside down. Barrett writes with clarity, wit, and a deep respect for her readers' intelligence.

She debunks the popular idea that we are left-brained or right-brained, showing that the brain is far more complex and integrated than that. She explains that our brains are not hardwired from birth but are constantly being rewired by experience. She reveals that emotions are not built into our brains at birth but are constructed in the moment, shaped by our culture and our past. She shows how our brains are social organs, designed to connect with other brains, and how we are more responsible for our own actions than we might think.

Each lesson is a revelation. The Wall Street Journal praised the book for eagerly dispelling myths about the ''gray matter between our ears.'' Discover noted that it ''compellingly explains that much of what we thought we knew about the brain is wrong.'' Forbes named it one of the top non-fiction books of 2020, saying, ''I learned dozens of new insights.'' GQ called it enlightening and unsettling.

''Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain'' is the perfect introduction to neuroscience for the curious reader. It is a book that will inform, challenge, and delight you. Highly recommended.