Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain“Wolf restores our awe of the human brain—its adaptability, its creativity, and its ability to connect with other minds through a procession of silly squiggles.” — San Francisco Chronicle How do people learn to read and write—and how has the development of these skills transformed the brain and the world itself ? Neuropsychologist and child development expert Maryann Wolf answers these questions in this ambitious and provocative book that chronicles the remarkable journey of written language not only throughout our evolution but also over the course of a single child’s life, showing why a growing percentage have difficulty mastering these abilities. With fascinating down-to-earth examples and lively personal anecdotes, Wolf asserts that the brain that examined the tiny clay tablets of the Sumerians is a very different brain from the one that is immersed in today’s technology-driven literacy, in which visual images on the screen are paving the way for a reduced need for written language—with potentially profound consequences for our future. |
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LibraryThing Review
User Review - PattyLee - LibraryThingParts II and III should be required reading for teachers. Part I was interesting, but if you are in a hurry you might not care about the origins of the first writing systems. Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - Eoin - LibraryThingPop linguistics always sounds good to me, then lets me down. Tremendously digressive, full of overstatement, and weird use of Strawman arguments. Read full review
Contents
1 | |
Chapter 2 | 24 |
Chapter 3 | 47 |
PART II | 79 |
Chapter 6 | 114 |
PART III | 163 |
Chapter 8 | 192 |
Chapter 9 | 212 |
Acknowledgments | 231 |
Notes | 237 |
Other editions - View all
Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain Maryanne Wolf No preview available - 2008 |