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A Trick Of The Mind

How the Brain Invents Your Reality

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A Trick Of The Mind

By: Daniel Yon
Narrated by: Daniel Yon
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

How does your brain decide what it’s seeing, from the physical world to other people? For decades, scientists have tried to understand how our brains work, not realising that the answer lies much closer to home than it seems.

The latest research in neuroscience and psychology suggests that the brain is doing the same thing that the scientists are: using past experiences to build theories of how the world works, and using these models to predict and make sense of it. Through this process, your brain constructs the reality that you live in.

In this book Daniel Yon takes the research one step further, uncovering how your brain colours your perception of the world, the judgements you make about other people and the beliefs you form about yourself. With transformative applications for how we engage with other communities and approach mental illness, A Trick of The Mind will revolutionise the way you think.

'With captivating storytelling and cutting-edge science, neuroscientist Daniel Yon explores the power and the perils of the brain's internal models, offering a provocative look at the hidden forces shaping our thoughts, beliefs, and even our sanity. Prepare to question everything you thought you knew' Daniel Z. Lieberman, author of The Molecule of More

'This book will profoundly change the way you consider your own mind' Lewis Dartnell, bestselling author of The Knowledge, Origins and Being Human

'You will not a find a more up-to-date or more compelling account of how a mind emerges from the brain' Chris Frith, Emeritus Professor of Neuropsychology at University College London

'An engaging, informative, and genuinely entertaining guide to the many weird ways in which our brains create the world we live in' Dean Burnett, author of The Idiot Brain

© Daniel Yon 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

 Biological Sciences Neuroscience & Neuropsychology Personal Development Personal Success Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Science Human Brain Thought-Provoking

Critic reviews

A fascinating insight into how your brain conjures up its picture of the surrounding world, models the inner mental states of others, and understands itself. This book will profoundly change the way you consider your own mind (Lewis Dartnell, bestselling author of THE KNOWLEDGE, ORIGINS and BEING HUMAN)
Your brain, and with it, your mind is isolated inside your skull. And yet we are not lonely. We experience ourselves moving freely through a world of things, people, and ideas. In this delightful book Daniel Yon reveals how our brain makes this possible. His paints the brain as a scientist using the crude data from our sense to make models of the world. Yon’s story is firmly based on complex empirical studies, many conducted by him and his colleagues. He guides the reader through them all with wit and clarity. You will not a find a more up-to-date or more compelling account of how a mind emerges from the brain (Chris Frith – Emeritus Professor of Neuropsychology at University College London)
A dazzling exploration of the “skull-bound scientist” in your head — juggling expectations, sensations, and past experiences to make sense of the world. Blending lucid, lively science with wit and wonderlust, Yon takes readers on a journey through baseball coaches, medieval mystics, Jimi Hendrix, and Borges’ Infinite Library, all while probing the power of uncertainty and the perils of overconfidence. The science hooks you, the storytelling keeps you, and the humour makes it unforgettable. (Cecilia Heyes, Professor of Psychology, All Souls College, University of Oxford)
Are you seeing the world as it truly is? A Trick of the Mind shatters the illusion of objective reality, revealing how our brains actively construct our perceptions, often shaping them in surprising and misleading ways. With captivating storytelling and cutting-edge science, neuroscientist Daniel Yon explores the power and the perils of the brain's internal models, offering a provocative look at the hidden forces shaping our thoughts, beliefs, and even our sanity. Prepare to question everything you thought you knew (Daniel Z. Lieberman, author of THE MOLECULE OF MORE)
Immensely readable ... Yon makes an excellent guide, both as a scientist working at the leading edge of this field and as a writer of great clarity
An engaging, informative and genuinely entertaining guide to the many weird ways in which our brains create the world we live in. (Dean Burnett, author of THE IDIOT BRAIN)
All stars
Most relevant
fir me, was really thought provoking, I was able to think of my own situations, people I knew and understand better. loved his delivery, the level of science versus layman's terms. Didn't want to turn this audiobook off.

such an interesting subject

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This is a fascinating insight into how we think and process the world around us. Backed up by real science and experiments and read by the author. It is really easy to digest, with amusing anecdotes demystifying the world of scientists. I felt like the author was telling me stories over a coffee, but was left thinking about how my preconceived notions effect my interactions with others.

Fascinating subject with great voice

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