#27 in Popular science
How to Change Your Mind
- 480
- Pages
- about 9 h
- Reading time
- NYT bestseller · 13 weeks on the list, peaked at #1
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About the book
How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence is a 2018 book by Michael Pollan. It became a No. 1 New York Times best-seller. How to Change Your Mind chronicles the history of psychedelic drugs, from their turbulent 1960s heyday to the resulting backlash and more recent revival. Through his coverage of the recent resurgence in this field of research, as well as his own personal use of psychedelics via a "mental travelogue", Pollan seeks to illuminate not only the mechanics of the drugs themselves, but also the inner workings of the human mind and consciousness.
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.2 across 327 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 68% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Popular science average of 8.3. That is how 8.3 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 6.5 | 8 | 2% |
| Hardcover | 8.3 | 319 | 98% |
Reader voices
The most-liked reviews on Hardcover (credited to their authors).
“So, I was introduced to this book through a podcast. It had been focusing on the addictive and mind altering qualities of caffeine and that's what piqued my interest. It became clear VERY quickly that the book's focus was not that at all, so it's…”
“I've always loved Michael Pollan's work, and so I picked this book up after finding myself fascinated by his New Yorker piece back in 2015. He perfectly balances his research/history with his own personal views and experiences with psilocybin. This book made me rethink several…”
Frequently asked
How long is How to Change Your Mind?
It has 480 pages — longer than 83% of the ranked books in Popular science.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
Same shelf — Popular science — with scores between 8.2 and 8.3, closest to this book.
