Description

Book Synopsis
From The New York Times best-selling author and host of Hidden Brain comes a counterintuitive, thought-provoking exploration of deception's role in human success.

Trade Review
"A lively and digestible book... Perhaps the book’s most important point advises how to combat destructive delusions." -- The Wall Street Journal
"In this scientifically informed, provocative and stylish study of self-deception, written with journalist Bill Mesler, [Shankar Vedantam] explores the risks and benefits of the lies we tell ourselves to preserve self-worth, relationships and social structures." -- Andrew Robinson, Five of the Week's Best Science Picks - Nature
"Powerful… [Vedantam] explains the phenomenon of deceit in general, and self-deception in particular, with the same plain language and gentle authority that his listeners have come to rely on." -- Katie Hafner - The Washington Post
"Vedantam and Mesler pepper hard data with compelling stories to make their case. Vedantam’s empathy and intuitive understanding of human nature, which shine on his popular “Hidden Brain” podcast, come through in ‘Useful Delusions’." -- The New York Times Book Review

Useful Delusions

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    £20.89

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    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Thu 2 Jul 2026.

    A Hardback by Shankar Vedantam, Bill Mesler

    20 in stock

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      Publisher: WW Norton & Co
      Publication Date: 02/04/2021
      ISBN13: 9780393652208, 978-0393652208
      ISBN10: 0393652203

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      From The New York Times best-selling author and host of Hidden Brain comes a counterintuitive, thought-provoking exploration of deception's role in human success.

      Trade Review
      "A lively and digestible book... Perhaps the book’s most important point advises how to combat destructive delusions." -- The Wall Street Journal
      "In this scientifically informed, provocative and stylish study of self-deception, written with journalist Bill Mesler, [Shankar Vedantam] explores the risks and benefits of the lies we tell ourselves to preserve self-worth, relationships and social structures." -- Andrew Robinson, Five of the Week's Best Science Picks - Nature
      "Powerful… [Vedantam] explains the phenomenon of deceit in general, and self-deception in particular, with the same plain language and gentle authority that his listeners have come to rely on." -- Katie Hafner - The Washington Post
      "Vedantam and Mesler pepper hard data with compelling stories to make their case. Vedantam’s empathy and intuitive understanding of human nature, which shine on his popular “Hidden Brain” podcast, come through in ‘Useful Delusions’." -- The New York Times Book Review

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