I’ll always be interested in a book about books. I wasn’t convinced by her comments about cultures with oral traditions but I’ve read obsessively for as long as I can remember so most of it was a lot of fun.

Man brains are weird and wonderful.

A good primer text for anyone who wants to be absolutely devastated at the (generalized) failings of the American education system and imagine other ways of learning.

4.5 stars (0.5 stars added for the Riordan excerpt).
It’s been a month since I read this. Promoted this text to five stars bc this book won’t leave my brain.
I’ve gotta pick up the other Wolf texts to get more context. This whole concept of text-based learning over oral-language learning? Man. Man, that’s really something. Shattered my worldview. I’ve been working with kids in those vital reading comprehension stages, and I’m seeing so many flaws in the way this material is presented in classrooms, the way people talk to the kids who don’t pick up reading skills as quickly. I have a lot of questions, a lot of concerns. Really, I just think Maryanne has a compelling field of research, and I want to understand it to help the kiddos. This was a good start for dipping my toe in the waters of understanding reading comprehension and learning. I have a long way to go.

Fascinating account about the evolution of reading. The prose is sometimes repetitive, but here are just a few of the ideas explored: (1) the different neuronal circuits used by people reading in different languages (English vs. Chinese); (2) Socrates's fear of what literacy could lead to (and implications for our own transition from text- to digital-based communication); (3) dyslexia as proof that our brains were not evolved to read.