Was introduced to this author with Cultish, and am happy to say I liked this one just as much. Montell really has a talent for both landing on incredibly compelling topics, and on writing about them in an entertaining and approachable ways. I will probably read anything else she writes from here on out.

“What if the universe isn’t for or against us? What if it’s not that serious?”

The Age of Magical Overthinking by Amanda Montell is an insightful, informative and accessible book exploring how and why we (over)think the way we do.

The Age of Magical Overthinking is broken into just under a dozen essays, each focusing on a different theory or bias that impacts how we think, how we process, and how we understand. I know what you might be thinking…theories? That’s not for me. But if you’re familiar with Montell’s book Cultish, you know she has a way of making even the most complicated ideas easy to digest and understand. Through funny personal anecdotes and other modern examples, even the most theory-averse will find something that will sit with them long after.

Through meticulous research, she seeks to break down WHY we think the way we do. From zero sum bias (which says that in order for someone to be winning, someone else has to be losing) or proportionality bias (trying to explain big events/feelings with equally big causes). Montell takes all of these ideas and talks about them through a lens of today, in a world full of comparison, immediacy, and short lived attention spans. Each one of the habits/bias she shares are innately human, but she shows us that by understanding them better, we can navigate them (perhaps rerouting our thinking a bit) and find our way to a better, fuller (hopefully less anxious) life.

Most chapters resonated with me, while a couple were interesting but not as relevant to my own life. Regardless, I think there’s something for everyone here. For anyone who’s ever thought, WHY do I think like that, WHY does my mind immediately tend to think in this way, how can I break that? The Age of Magical Overthinking is a step towards understanding ourselves, and in turn, one another.

I'm a big fan of Montell's CULTISH, and this book works well in tandem. What are cults and fanatics but people who have embraced magical overthinking?

Lots of intriguing insight here, including tons about different biases you may have and never realized, from confirmation bias to frequency bias to every type of bias you didn't know existed and yet have likely fallen victim to.

As usual, Montell's writing is crisp and engaging, informative and useful.

Highly recommend.

Amanda Montell's "The Age of Magical Overthinking" is a fascinating and insightful exploration of the resurgence of irrational beliefs and magical thinking in modern society. With a lively and engaging writing style, Montell delves into various contemporary phenomena – from the renewed popularity of astrology and crystals to the allure of conspiracy theories and the anti-vaccination movement.

Through meticulous research and interviews, Montell examines the psychological and sociological factors driving this "magical renaissance." She skillfully analyzes how the uncertainty and anxiety of our times have fueled a desire for simplistic explanations and a yearning for control, leading many to embrace pseudoscientific beliefs and mystical practices.

While maintaining a respectful and non-judgmental tone, Montell encourages readers to think critically about the allure of magical thinking and its potential pitfalls. She offers valuable insights into how we can cultivate a healthier relationship with uncertainty and find meaningful ways to cope with life's complexities.

Overall, "The Age of Magical Overthinking" is a thought-provoking and engaging read that sheds light on an intriguing aspect of modern culture. Montell's balanced and well-researched approach makes it a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the enduring appeal of magical thinking in the 21st century.

LOVED. I love every thing that Amanda Montell has published, and I'll continued to purchase and read her books for forever.

This is a book that will have you thinking about the different ways we as a society think. The author talks about The Halo Effect, frequent bias, confirmation bias and the IKEA effect. I really enjoyed this book and enjoyed the narrator and her stories.

I was so fully expecting to love this since I've really enjoyed the author's work, but it fell a little flat for me. It was entertaining enough and contained some bits of interesting information, but didn't feel quite as incisive as some of her other writing. The cover is stunning, and I would still recommend this to anyone looking for some super light nonfiction vibes.

Montell’s “Age of Magical Overthinking” is the socially aware explanation of the most illogical human actions and ways of thinking that plague our society today. I knew that this book was going to be well researched and a balance of personal, relatable anecdotes and bigger picture patterns and data based on Montell’s amazing previous book “Cultish.” While I was affirmed and engaged by “Cultish,” I learned and reflected so much as I was reading “Age of…”. It almost feels like the “Freakonomics” or similar economics for the masses book but with much more awareness of the social and political context on which it’s operating. I can’t wait to read anything Montell writes next! Her writer’s voice is relatable, detailed, and incredibly enjoyable to read.

Perhaps it’s just confirmation bias but I knew I’d love this book because I’m already a super fan of all the things Amanda Montell creates - books, podcasts, everything. For one, I just love her style of writing & telling a story - I would read anything she wrote, even if it was the most boring topic in the world. But with a degree in linguistics, that shouldn’t be surprising. And yet, I don’t often come across writers who can combine words in just the same lyrical & beautiful way that she does. However, I’m still surprised at just how much I loved this book, maybe because I’m not sure I fully understood what I was getting myself into.

The Age of Magical Overthinking is a perfectly timed book for my life because I have been spending a lot of time trying to figure out what the hell is going on in my head & why. And it’s the WHY that Montell really explores in this book via different thought biases that we all bring into our daily worlds. Some I had already heard of before - like the buzzy “confirmation bias” - but many of these were new to me. And either way, I learned a lot more than I predicted. I expected to be entertained but I wasn’t expecting to come across so many moments that made me stop, think, note, process, & journal my thoughts & how these biases appear in my life & regular thought patterns.

This book definitely falls into the category of, “I will be recommending this book to everyone.” It really points out just how silly our brains can be & just how easily influenced they can be, even if we’re convince that they’re not. But there is no fear-mongering; it’s informational in a way that helps the reader realize all the many filters we process information through. (I am already planning on brining this up to my therapist when I meet with her this week because we are focusing on personal narratives & thought patterns.)

Thank you to Atria Books & NetGalley for providing a digital advanced reader copy for review. All thoughts & opinions expressed are my own.

A fantastic audio reading experience!

So glad we get to listen to the author narrate -- it really brings the material to life and gives readers an intimate and fascinating perspective of who she is as an author, scholar, and writer. And I'm so glad we get to learn from Amanda in this book. She's a great addition to her field of scholarship and I really felt like I was thinking in new ways while reading.

I was really engaged learning about her ideas on hero worship, cognitive fallacies, sense making, digital and in-person behaviors, connection, and mindfulness. I also felt especially connected to her insights on nostalgia and declinism, ordinariness, and the evolutionary nature of paranoia. I think the author is a great mind, a thorough researcher, and a thought-provoking writer. She has a great (and millennially resonant) voice and an ability to accessibly convey complex information in a captivating way. Excited to read whatever she puts out!

The only complaint I only ever have about Amanda's books is that they're entirely too short! I want more! I want to keep learning from the author's unique and valuable insight.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. THE AGE OF MAGICAL OVERTHINKING is out now.

I loved this author's last book, CULTISH, and found that such a fascinating and fun read that I couldn't wait to get my hands on her latest. Sadly, I was really underwhelmed by this one! I found myself getting to the end of a chapter and feeling like I'd completely missed whatever point the author was trying to make, and this happened at the end of....every chapter? The thesis here feels so thin, so completely muddled, as to be nonexistent. What is she trying to say? What is the point? I'm not sure the author even really knows. Unlike CULTISH this all feels very thrown together around an idea that just doesn't have enough meat behind it to sustain an entire book. I'd still be interested to read whatever she puts out in the future but I'm hoping for something with more purpose and a more cohesive, compelling focus.

Amanda Montell writes sociology books for hot girls and on the one hand, I love her for that. I really enjoy how accessible her writing style is- listening to this audiobook felt like tuning into a podcast with a smart, cool host, and it made me feel *~cool and smart~* by proximity. Education in a way that feels effortless? We love that.

On the other hand, I don't feel like the essays in this book really added anything new to the canon, other than some sometimes-interesting personal anecdotes. I felt this way when I read Cultish a few years ago, but it only really crystalized for while reading this book- a lot of the psychological and sociological phenomenona that Montell defines in her writing is, to some extent, just common sense with a fancy label slapped on it. Maybe that's just a personal bias as someone who's already pretty familiar with this subject matter. But to me, the most interesting parts of the book and where I learned the most came from the specific experiments, studies, and stories that supported and demonstrated these cognitive biases rather than the explanations themselves. Maybe that's the point. But even among these interesting examples, I don't feel that this book as a whole has a lot of staying power, at least for me, save for a few fun facts.

So overall, it was a fun audiobook, but I don't feel that I really retained much or came away with any wildly interesting new information that I'll be turning over in my mind. Personally, I preferred Cultish as it felt a lot more focused with more intentional (read: less) personal anecdotes/tangents. But I'd still recommend this book if you're a sociology gworl, or maybe more for people who are trying to ease into the world of non-fiction for the first time.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I also listened to the audio version on my own personal Everand account.

This book was so interesting! I'm already a big fan of Amanda Montell & her study of language but this transcended that, taking aim at the psuedo-therapy speak popular in today's culture. It was an interesting blend of psychology, philosophy, linguistics, and the classic Amanda Montell humor. I really enjoyed this book & will definitely keep reading her future work.

I really enjoy Amanda's writing and other work including the podcast Sounds Like a Cult. This is my second book by the author and I'm excited to read more.

As someone with OCD, I found this book interesting and also helpful for my own "magical overthinking."

I’ve been wanting to read Amanda Montell for a while becuase I’ve heard great things, but struggle to take interest in cult stuff, so I was delighted to see this, a somewhat related study of groupthink and cultural collective psychology, but with a broader lens.

This is fascinating stuff that really makes you think about not just what we believe but why, and various cultural phenomena (many internet-related) change both our value system and sense of perception.

I’m particularly fascinated by the Halo Effect and especially the IKEA Effect, and Montell does a lovely job of explaining both in a manner both sophisticated and easily digestible. It’s psychology for the masses, but absent all the psychobabble and scammy internet “therapist” rhetoric.

In all, a quick read that is both fun and informative. And wherever Mr. Backpack is, I hope he reads this and weeps a little.

I loved Montell's perspective on "magical overthinking" and it was a perfect mix of personal tidbits and research. Really enjoyed this one!

The idea of this narrative was to navigate cognitive bias relative to what seems to be drawn to the attention of our new reality. Its visionary shows growth in different perspectives and changes. In what seems of things get overlooked in are generation. The author highlights what social media has brought to the table and explains the consequences of using these platforms. Also, she informed other matters in how society tends to receive information in a repetitive pattern and it can become a problem in the future. All this information was base on opinion and the way the author looks and overthinks about the theme that was presented in the book.

I, personally didn't enjoy much of the read. But I did finish the book.

Thank you, NetGalley, for letting me read and advance copy of the book.

This book of essays was very hit or miss for me. Some essays I found very thoughtful and poignant regarding how we interact with the world in an "age of overthinking", being constantly engaged with technology and social media. And some essays I found to be very fractured and weaving in and out of different thoughts while never really coalescing into a strong message.

super interesting subject! i really wanna read her other book cultish now! however, i think i would’ve preferred this on audiobook.

I listen to Amanda's podcast "Sounds Like a Cult" and knew that I had to read this book. I always find it interesting how Amanda weaves in everyday culture to see how we are being influenced, influencing others, and existing in the world.

This is a short book and each chapter is like a mini essay on its own topic which makes it easy to read, but while enjoyable, it just wasn't as engaging as I was hoping for.

This is a fun look into culture and how we exist in the world.