The Memory Illusion

Remembering, Forgetting, and the Science of False Memory
Have you forgotten the name of someone you've met dozens of times? Or discovered that your memory of an important event was completely different from everyone else's? The author draws on research to show why our memories so often play tricks on us - and how, if we understand their fallibility, we can actually improve their accuracy.

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

'Truly fascinating.' Steve Wright, BBC Radio 2


- Have you ever forgotten the name of someone you’ve met dozens of times?
- Or discovered that your memory of an important event was completely different from everyone else’s?
- Or vividly recalled being in a particular place at a particular time, only to discover later that you couldn’t possibly have been?


We rely on our memories every day of our lives. They make us who we are. And yet the truth is, they are far from being the accurate record of the past we like to think they are. In The Memory Illusion, forensic psychologist and memory expert Dr Julia Shaw draws on the latest research to show why our memories so often play tricks on us – and how, if we understand their fallibility, we can actually improve their accuracy. The result is an exploration of our minds that both fascinating and unnerving, and that will make you question how much you can ever truly know about yourself. Think you have a good memory? Think again.


'A spryly paced, fun, sometimes frightening exploration of how we remember – and why everyone remembers things that never truly happened.' Pacific Standard