The Age of Magical Overthinking (Unabridged)
-
-
4.1 • 30 Ratings
-
-
- $14.99
Publisher Description
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
From the bestselling author of Cultish and host of the podcast Sounds Like a Cult, a delicious blend of cultural criticism and personal narrative that explores our cognitive biases and the power, disadvantages, and highlights of magical thinking.
Utilizing the linguistic insights of her “witty and brilliant” (Blyth Roberson, author of America the Beautiful?) first book Wordslut and the sociological explorations of her breakout hit Cultish, Amanda Montell now turns her erudite eye to the inner workings of the human mind and its biases in her most personal and electrifying work yet.
“Magical thinking” can be broadly defined as the belief that one’s internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in the external world: think of the conviction that one can manifest their way out of poverty, stave off cancer with positive vibes, thwart the apocalypse by learning to can their own peaches, or transform an unhealthy relationship to a glorious one with loyalty alone. In all its forms, magical thinking works in service of restoring agency amid chaos, but in The Age of Magical Overthinking, Montell argues that in the modern information age, our brain’s coping mechanisms have been overloaded, and our irrationality turned up to an eleven.
In a series of razor sharp, deeply funny chapters, Montell delves into a cornucopia of the cognitive biases that run rampant in our brains, from how the “halo effect” cultivates worship (and hatred) of larger-than-life celebrities, to how the “sunk cost fallacy” can keep us in detrimental relationships long after we’ve realized they’re not serving us. As she illuminates these concepts with her signature brilliance and wit, Montell’s prevailing message is one of hope, empathy, and ultimately forgiveness for our anxiety-addled human selves. If you have all but lost faith in our ability to reason, Montell aims to make some sense of the senseless. To crack open a window in our minds, and let a warm breeze in. To help quiet the cacophony for a while, or even hear a melody in it.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Best-selling author and podcaster Amanda Montell takes an entertaining look at the science and myths behind what we believe and why. In a world where internet influencers have folks believing intentional thinking can cure diseases, urban legends convince bank robbers lemon juice will make them invisible, and “fake it ’til you make it” has become standard advice to entrepreneurs, how do we know what’s true and what’s a lie? Montell delivers an in-depth discussion of the dangers of information overload in the age of smartphones and social media, the many ways it impacts us, and how to cope with it. She shares her thoughts in a style that’s straightforward and conversational, adding plenty of wit and her own life experiences. Montell is as good a narrator as she is an author, and whether she’s talking to cancer survivors or dishing on good and bad boyfriends, she comes across as a trustworthy friend. It’s a welcome dose of smarts and sanity in an increasingly hectic world.
Customer Reviews
Not recommended
There is no constructive process in writing this book. Nothing more than a collection of instagram or twitter posts.