Proust and the squid : the story and science of the reading brain / Maryanne Wolf ; illustrations by Catherine Stoodley.

Summary:

A developmental psychologist evaluates the ways in which reading and writing have transformed the human brain, in an anecdotal study that reveals the significant changes in evolutionary brain physiology throughout history.

"This book would be of interest to literacy instructors and tutors. I've always thought it was amazing that we can look at a page and decipher the symbols there, and then travel to incredibly rich worlds through the written world. This book explains why that is so, and what happens in the brain. I was most interested in the history of writing and how ancient cultures used symbols and then alphabets - such as how the Sumerians taught their children to read, and why the alphabet was such an advancement to communication. The second part of the book looks at how the brain learns to read over time (from beginning readers to experts) and the third part looks at what happens in the brain of people with dyslexia. The key message is that there is no reading gene - we have to use our brains in very special, learned ways in order to communicate in this way and it's become critical in our society (compared, for example, to the oral tradition). Considering our past and the strides made in communicating, the author also ponders the effects of the visual, multi-stimulating, and superficial Internet/multimedia age and how it will affect our brains and our society." – January 2011 Exemplary Literacy Materials Online Reviews.

Record details

ISBN: 9780060186395
ISBN: 0060186399
ISBN: 9780060933845 (pbk.)
ISBN: 0060933844 (pbk.)
Physical Description: xi, 308 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: New York, NY : Harper, c2007.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references (p. [237]-295) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:	How the brain learned to read -- Reading lessons from Proust and the squid -- How the brain adapted itself to read: the first writing systems -- The birth of an alphabet and Socrates' protests -- How the brain learns to read over time -- The beginnings of reading development, or not -- The "natural history" of reading development: connecting the parts of the young reading brain --The unending story of reading's development -- When the brain can't learn to read -- Dyslexia's puzzle and the brain's design -- Genes, gifts, and dyslexia -- From the reading brain to "what comes next".
Target Audience Note:	Reading level: Independent (Gr 8+).