1
of
1
Am I Normal?
The 200-Year Search for Normal People (and Why They Donβt Exist)
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 299 ratings, 40 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
Read More
Format: Hardback
TEMPORARILY OUT OF STOCK
Please add to wishlist to be notified when back in stock
Sorry, we're currently out of stock of Am I Normal?. Please add to your Wishlist and we'll send you an email as soon as it's back in stock.
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?
Latest News
Popular Kid's Series Made Into Graphic Novels!
Eve is rounding up some of her favourite children's series that are also available in...
Why I Started Reading Cosy Romance
For years, my sister-in-law and I have joked that I need to fall in love...
Your Guide to Yuval Noah Harari
Yuval Noah Harari is a best selling history author as well as a philosopher, and...
Magical Athlete - The Board Game for Non-Board Gamers!
Is the board game Magical Athlete the 'Board Game of the Year' for non-board gamers?
Books for the Person Who Dreams Big
I've always been a dreamer. I've always been drawn to people who take an idea,...
See moreA deep dive into the strange science of the 'Normal', and the origins of an anxiety-ridden modern obsession.
The riveting history of the strange science of the 'Normal', and the origins of an anxiety-ridden modern obsession
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
Before the nineteenth century, the term normal was rarely ever associated with human behaviour. Normal was a term used in maths, for right angles. People weren't normal; triangles were.
But from the 1830s, this branch of science really took off across Europe and North America, with a proliferation of IQ tests, sex studies, a census of hallucinationsβeven a UK beauty map (which concluded the women in Aberdeen were "the most repellent"). This book tells the surprising history of how the very notion of the normal came about, how it shaped us all, often while entrenching oppressive values.
Am I Normal? by Sarah Chaney looks at why we're still asking the internet: Do I have a normal body? Is my sex life normal? Are my kids normal? And along the way, she challenges why we ever thought it might be a desirable thing to be.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781788162456
Publisher: Profile Books Ltd
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 14 July 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Wellcome Collection
Edition: Main
Illustration: B&W integrated
Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 32.0mm
Width: 144.0mm
Height: 218.0mm
Weight: 515g
Pages: 336
About the Author
Sarah Chaney is a Research Associate at Queen Mary Centre for the History of the Emotions. She spent several awkward teen years furiously rebelling against the mainstream, whilst secretly longing to be normal. So, a normal teenager then.
Alongside her research work, she runs the public exhibitions and events programme at the Royal College of Nursing and writes occasionally for The Conversation and The Lancet.
Also by Sarah Chaney
View all-
Am I Normal?
As heard on BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour A Blackwell's and Waterstones Best Popular Science Book of 2022 'Excellent ... one of those rare pop-science books that make you look at the whole world differently' The Daily Telegraph * 'Riveting' Mail on Sunday * 'Captivating' Guardian, Book of the Day 'Compelling' Observer Sarah Chaney takes us on an eye-opening and...Paperback$2799Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Psyche on the Skin
Self-harm is thought by many to be a modern epidemic: a phenomenon of the late twentieth century, a symptom of extreme emotional turmoil in young people, particularly young women. Yet it was 150 years ago, within early asylum psychiatry, that self-mutilation was first codified as a category of behaviour, and explanations for a variety of self-injurious acts were conceived very...Paperback$2999Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks
More from History & Military
View all-
New ReleaseBehind Enemy Lines
Archie Gibson's initiation into desert warfare almost proved to be his last. Barrelling through the sand dunes at the wheel of his truck, Gibson spied a searing flash of light up ahead, the signature of a feared German 88mm gun firing ... right at him. He leapt from his speeding vehicle just before it was torn apart and turned into...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe Cauldron
How did an elderly cleric overthrow the Shah of Iran and change the world?Why did Bin Laden attack the USA - and why did the USA destroy Saddam?How did Britain and France carve up the Middle East - and why did the Kurds never get their own state? THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE MAKING OF TODAY'S MIDDLE EAST: A SPELLBINDING...Hardback$4999Elsewhere:$6000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Saving Elli
One child. Two years in hiding. Three lives in mortal danger. In Nazi-occupied Amsterdam, near Anne Frank's house, another Jewish girl is hidden. Her name is Elli. Her father has been executed at Mauthausen concentration camp. Her mother is fleeing for her life. Elli is next. To save her, resistance couple Frits and Jo Hakkens must risk everything, concealing her...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Spy and the Traitor
The Spy and the Traitor by Ben Macintyre is a spellbinding Cold War thriller that unravels the true story of Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB double agent who risked everything to aid the British in the battle against Soviet oppression. In meticulously researched detail, Macintyre paints a vivid portrait of espionage, double-crossing, and unparalleled bravery, giving readers a riveting glimpse into...Paperback$2100Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Suicidal Empathy
The bestselling author of The Parasitic Mind shows why empathy in politics leads to civilizational collapse. What happens when a society elevates victimhood to a virtue and decides that punishment is cruel? You get the disease Dr. Gad Saad calls suicidal empathy. And the West may be terminally infected. In his new book, Suicidal Empathy, Saad unleashes a blistering critique...Paperback$3099Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe Race to the Top of the World
The epic true story of George Mallory and Edmund Hillary and the quest to be the first to conquer Everest. A captivating story of adventure, daring, despair and triumph from Australia's favourite storyteller. Last century, two men, thirty years apart, set out to become the first to conquer the highest point in the world. Their names are synonymous with adventure...Hardback$4699Elsewhere:$6000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Man's Search For Meaning
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl is a profound, thought-provoking memoir and psychological exploration that delves into the harrowing experiences of life in Nazi concentration camps, intertwined with the authorβs groundbreaking theories on existential psychology. The book is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, offering a beacon of hope and a roadmap for finding purpose...Paperback$1800Elsewhere:$2100Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
SignedThe Chief and the Empire
The Chief and the Empire uncovers the extraordinary true tale of Te Tai Tokerau rangatira Te Pahi - the first influential MΔori leader to cross the Tasman - whose curiosity about the PΔkehΔ world forged alliances, saved lives, and ultimately cost him his own. On a visit to Sydney in 1805, Te Pahi was feted as a celebrity, building close...Paperback$3200Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Wager
THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 'The beauty of The Wager unfurls like a great sail... one of the finest nonfiction books I've ever read' Guardian 'The greatest sea story ever told' Spectator 'I cannot think of anyone who would not love this book... It is an extraordinary true story, beautifully...Paperback$2399Elsewhere:$3999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Discipline
Silence is complicity, but how do we confront the cost of speaking up? Sydney, May 2021. Ashraf is an academic whose career and personal life are in freefall. Hannah is a young journalist struggling to honour the voices of her community. When a Year 12 Al-Bayinnah College student is arrested for protesting a university's ties to an Israeli weapons manufacturer,...Paperback$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
The Golden Menhir
Assurancetourix is entering the legendary Gallic bards' competition to win the golden menhir. But with the Romans keeping a close watch, Asterix and Obelix must protect him at all costs. Their mission? Keep him safe-no matter what... even if it means risking their own ears! First released as a book-disc in 1967, this adventure soon became a rare treasure, long...Hardback$2999Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Biological War
There is an invisible weapon among us. By the time you know you are a victim, it has turned you into a killer. A blistering new non-fiction thriller from the Baillie Gifford shortlisted author of Nuclear War (200,000 copies sold). A lab accident, a bio-attack, a global pandemic, and the collapse of human society. In this essential new book, based...Paperback$3299Elsewhere:$4000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 160,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
History & Military lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
