Reading in the Brain: The Science and Evolution of a Human Invention
By Dehaene, Stanislas
Viking Adult, $27.95, 388 pages
How does the brain interpret two-dimensional squiggles on a page into sounds with distinct meanings? Anyone even slightly curious about the answer should pick up this book. Mathematician, scientist and psychologist Stanislas Dehaene presents an intricate look into the brain’s ability to read and also how this extraordinary feat is accomplished. Director of the Cognitive Neuro-Imaging Unit in Saclay, France, Dehaene included accurate brain-scan images and diagrams enabling the reader to better understand the “cerebral” prose.
Notwithstanding a rather obvious acceptance of Darwin’s theories, Dehaene convincingly explains such intriguing subjects as dyslexia, the learning instinct and symmetry perception. The author’s deep appreciation for the human brain’s ability to learn and use spoken and written language paints the pages with a reverence which is quite refreshing in a science tome. Dehaene points out that not only are humans unique in this ability, but it is their desire to learn this amazing art which sets them above every other species on earth. An excellent—if slightly biased—book full of remarkable data and images on the inner working of the reading brain.
Reviewed by Meredith Greene
