The Shape of Things Unseen - by Adam Zeman (Hardcover)

About the Book

Imagination isn't the exception in our daily lives; it's our default setting

Book Synopsis

'Fascinating, absorbing and educative' A. C. Grayling
'Highly original and beautifully written' Dominic Lawson

A compelling insight into how our imagination works, based on the latest scientific research.

People often think of imagination as something used only in creative endeavours. In fact, we use imagination constantly as we reminisce, anticipate, plan, daydream, read, create imagined worlds. The truth is we live in the here and now much less than we tend to think. Imagination isn't the exception in our daily lives; it's our default setting. Yet only now are we beginning to understand exactly how it works.

From hallucination to sleepwalking, from REM sleep to delusions, neurologist Adam Zeman brilliantly guides us through the latest scientific studies in the world of the imagination. He draws on research in neuroscience, the study of human origins and child development to show how the human brain is above all else a creative, imaginative organ - and that we have evolved to share what we imagine.

Our brains behave in strikingly similar ways when we observe, remember, imagine or act. Imagine looking at a cube and your eye will trace the contours of the cube as if you were actually seeing it. Yet it turns out that people differ hugely in their imaginative experience. Some people lack sensory imagery altogether - they would be unable to picture their family if asked to - but still lead fulfilling, even highly creative, lives.

From how we visualise to how we understand the minds of others, from the benefits of play to mental disorders, The Shape of Things Unseen dazzles and delights. It is an essential guide to the latest discoveries about the workings of the human mind.

Review Quotes

"Groundbreaking . . . Neurologist Adam Zeman takes readers on an enlightening journey through the science, psychology and artistry of imagination, unveiling how it governs our perceptions, fuels creativity and even leads to poignant failures. From everyday daydreams to extreme conditions like aphantasia and hyperphantasia, Zeman reveals the unseen landscapes of our minds in a way that is both accessible and deeply insightful. The Shape of Things Unseen is essential reading for anyone intrigued by the mysteries of the mind" --Prof Steven Laureys, Neurologist and author of THE NO-NONSENSE MEDITATION BOOK

"A marvellous account of the brain's creative powers in perception and imagination, beautifully written, bringing novel insights to bear on the richness of mental life: Zeman is the poet of this science, bringing into seamless connection neurology, neuropsychology, artistic creativity and lived experience at the opposite ends of a scale - from those capable of forming exceptionally vivid mental pictures to those unable to do so at all - and what everything in between means for the way brains construct our worlds. Fascinating, absorbing and educative" --A. C. Grayling, philosopher and author of THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY

"Rarely does one come across a scientific book that one simply does not want to put down. This is an immensely readable account of how the human imagination works, and of its ramifications in all areas of our lives. Adam Zeman is an extremely companionable writer, leading us courteously through the byways of neuroscience and psychology as he expounds his fascinating subject. This book is a triumph. It is a work of great importance that touches upon many of the issues that beset our world today" --Alexander McCall Smith

"What is it like to live without mental images, to imagine without a mind's eye? In The Shape of Things Unseen, pioneering neurologist Adam Zeman leads us through the mysterious world of aphantasia. It's an intoxicating journey. Zeman is a gifted writer and storyteller and manages to do justice to the poetry of the mind as well as the science. I have a feeling this book is destined to become a classic of narrative neuroscience" --Paul Broks

"A profoundly useful roadmap to one of the most mysterious aspects of the universe, The Shape of Things Unseen is a clear-eyed, engaging overview of how the imagination works. It reveals its central role in perception and memory, and the extent to which it has differentiated us from the rest of the animal kingdom. Recommended reading for any mind that wants to understand itself" --John Higgs, author of KLF: CHAOS MAGIC MUSIC MONEY

"A fine guide to the tricky science of the imagination... Admirably wide-ranging" --Peter Hoskin, New Scientist

"Zeman's absorbing book is itself another example of the power of the imagination" --New Statesman

"An illuminating and wide-ranging history of ideas about the imagination ... Delightfully complex and discursive ... [Adam Zeman's] book is a fascinating summary sketch of countless models, theories and imaginings of the imagination; among them his own" --Times Literary Supplement

About the Author

Adam Zeman is Honorary Fellow, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, at the University of Edinburgh, and Honorary Professor of Neurology at the University of Exeter. He was brought up in London and trained in Medicine at Oxford University Medical School, after a first degree in Philosophy and Psychology. His earlier books include Consciousness: A User's Guide, A Portrait of the Brain, and, as co-author, Epilepsy and Memory.