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How To Think

A Guide for the Perplexed
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( 4,460 ratings, 680 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
How to Think by Alan Jacobs explores the art of thinking clearly and effectively in a world full of distractions and conflicting information. The book delves into the importance of understanding different perspectives, overcoming cognitive biases, and engaging in meaningful dialogue. Jacobs provides insights into improving critical thinking skills and fostering open-mindedness in personal and public discourse.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you appreciate works that delve into the intricacies of intellectual habits and the importance of cultivating a thoughtful mindset. It offers insights into resisting the urge for snap judgments and encourages deeper reflection, making it appealing for those interested in improving their critical thinking skills.

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The world is telling you what to think. Here's how to resist.

The world is telling you what to think. Here's how to resist.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description
How to Think is a contrarian treatise on why we're not as good at thinking as we assume—but how recovering this lost art can rescue our inner lives from the chaos of modern life.

Most of us don't want to think, writes the American essayist Alan Jacobs. Thinking is trouble. It can force us out of familiar, comforting habits, and it can complicate our relationships with like-minded friends. Finally, thinking is slow, and that's a problem when our habits of consuming information (mostly online) leave us lost in the echo chamber of social media, where speed and factionalism trump accuracy and nuance.

In this clever, witty book, Jacobs diagnoses the many forces that prevent thought—forces that have only worsened in the age of Twitter, such as 'alternative facts', and information overload. He also dispels the many myths we hold about what it means to think well. (For example: it's impossible to 'think for yourself'.)

Drawing on sources as far-flung as the novelist Marilynne Robinson, the basketball legend Wilt Chamberlain, the British philosopher John Stuart Mill, and the Christian theologian C.S. Lewis, Jacobs digs into the nuts and bolts of the cognitive process, offering hope that each of us can reclaim our mental lives from the whirlpool of what now passes for public debate.

After all, if we can learn to think together, perhaps we can learn to live together.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

How to Think by Alan Jacobs is praised for being witty, engaging, and optimistic, making it a valuable guide in today's polarized society. Publishers Weekly highlights its need for encouraging the pursuit of knowledge amidst partisanship. Robin Sloan compares the book to a steady journey through turbulent times, appreciating Jacobs' thoughtful style and insightful guidance.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781781259573

Publisher: Profile Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 04 October 2018

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Profile Books Ltd

Edition: Main

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 18.0mm

Width: 126.0mm

Height: 194.0mm

Weight: 120g

Pages: 160

About the Author

Alan Jacobs is the Distinguished Professor of the Humanities at Baylor University. He has written extensively for the Atlantic, WSJ, the New Atlantis, and Harper's and is the author of several books, including a well-received biography of C. S. Lewis and a book on the pleasures of reading. Find him on twitter @ayjay and visit his website at http://blog.ayjay.org/

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