From the author of “Life On A Knife’s Edge – Life Lessons From A Brain Surgeon” comes this very readable, yet very thorough (judging by the extensive bibliography at the back) study on dreams. The author states that before starting this work he thought dreams represented very much a niche area of medicine with their interpretation, especially, having the distinct aroma of pop psychology, akin to horoscopes, but recent discoveries he has made on the operating table and the research carried out for this book has convinced him otherwise. A specialist in paediatric brain surgery he certainly knows what he’s talking about and even though the complexities of brain functions will inevitably stump the general reader he makes everything as clear as he possibly can in explaining dreams and their purpose, significance, importance and meanings.
There are sections on nightmares, erotic dreams, inspirations for creativity and impact on health and well-being. There’s quite a chunk on lucid dreaming (where the sleeper is aware they are dreaming and can potentially exercise some control over their dreams) and what all this might mean for us in the future as some bewildering technology is under development.
If you, like me, are interested in dreams then you are going to want to read this book. To get you going here are some little snippets I found myself highlighting.
• We spend about two hours a night dreaming and not just during REM sleep as was once thought.
• When dreaming the brain’s Executive Network shuts down (which controls logic, reason and reality testing) and another part, termed here the Imagination Network becomes dominant leading to those scenarios the waking brain would never fathom.
• What we dream about is far more universal than you would expect. Surveys carried out fifty years about in four different countries show people’s dreams to be remarkably similar (predominantly school/exam dreams and being chased).
• Dreams do actually follow rules: When objects transform into other objects it is generally something similar. It’s hard to read in a dream (that is why I can never finish calling the school register in my recurring teacher dream). Use of TVs, computers and social media turn up rarely. Hands generally look strange as do watch and clock faces.
• Up to the age of 7 or 8 children are rarely active participants in their own dreams, it's mainly animals from stories and cartoons. When nightmares kick in (and they need to for developmental reasons) children will experience them 5 times more than adults.
• Exam Dreams? In tests students did 20% better than those who didn’t dream about them, even though the dreamer may have had the humiliating experience of turning up late, or naked, or forgetting to revise.
Towards the end the author concludes that the understanding of dreams can only enrich our lives and help us to cope with events and emotions. And, as a bonus, you never know you might discover something along the lines of the Periodic Table, DNA, or the sewing machine all of which benefitted from dreamers.
I think I’m going for a lie down now……
This Is Why You Dream is published by Cornerstone Press, part of the Penguin Random House Group in the UK on 18th April 2024. Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for the advance review copy.

I picked this book because I have an undergraduate background in neuroscience and a fascination with all things neuro so I thought it'd be interesting. It's well referenced and engaging. I particularly liked reading about the consistency of dream themes across different human cultures. Some of the interpretations don't quite work for me, seeming a little convoluted. But overall it is a good book for providing a scientific basis for why we dream. I expect I will return again to reread some of the chapters again.

Judging by the pages of lengthy citations, this was a well researched book by an author who understands his subject. Despite this, however, it did not come across as an authoritative piece of work and in some aspects felt quite superficial. I also thought that some of the research results were cherry picked because they suited the narrative or made a good anecdote rather than providing conclusive evidence to support a theory. It was easy to read and take in but had maybe been dumbed down a bit too much. I’m not a scientist or medically trained and am certainly not looking for an academic text, just a bit more depth and a degree of healthy scepticism when the research did not come up with the goods.

With thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an advance copy.

Fascinating subject that I feel barely skims the surface of why we dream! Easy to read & understand.

I was completely hooked with this book by brain surgeon Rahul, it goes into a huge amount on depth of how we sleep and what the waking mind takes from these dreams.
This gives a very scientific explanation and approaches dreaming and nightmares from anything I ve read before.

Those interested in sleep and dreams will find this really interesting. It does tend to be worded for those who are more knowledgeable within the science background so I struggled in places, however it was too much that I couldn't continue.
I from sleep issues and have been under a sleep study myself so it was great to read further into what is being looked at within my own issues. (The stories I could tell from my sleep walking are insane!) Also, very intrigued to see that my body/brain isn't quite doing what what it's meant to do when sleeping (I guess that's why they're assessing me). I have also experimented with the lucid dreams and have always done it but not known it had a name.
A great book that I had to read in small doses (actually found I had crazier dreams on the night I read the book). Also, will be one to refer back to regularly in the future.
Many thanks #NetGalley for the copy of #ThisIsWhyYouDream

I loved this book. It was fairly accessible to those with a non- science background and the author's style was compelling. I found that I had discovered lots of things in my own dream patterns which made sense. I particularly liked the section on waking dreams and I remembered that I used to be able to return back into my dreams and change the outcome when I a young child. Fascinating stuff.
Thank you to the publishers, the author and Netgalley for the opportunity to access an arc.

I had been looking forward to this topic, alas, what I found was overly wordy and repetitive, e.g. the reader is told on five occasions that adrenaline is dialled down during dreaming. This book could do with some images to break up those long text passages.
There’s scarce reference to Freud and none to Jung to be found here, but Kasatkin (1960’s) is featuring large as proof that all manner of illnesses can be “predicted” by dreams. However, the majority of Kasatkin’s patients suffered from neuropsychiatric illnesses.
“Listening to dreams has even led to cancer diagnoses. One study [unreferenced] described women who credited warning dreams with their decision to get checked for breast cancer—and were ultimately diagnosed with the disease.” This is very iffy territory indeed - coincidence versus causality.

More recent oneirological research e.g. by Marzano, Walker, Horton, Malinowski, Revonsuo is mostly absent.

The “conclusions” are often tenuous if not mere conjecture, e.g. to liken the effects of an arachnoid cyst in the brain to those of dreaming is quite a leap. More than once, sample sizes of less than ten are used to “prove” a statement.
The “threat simulation” theory as reason why we dream is nothing new, nor is kinesia paradoxa which is by no means limited to dreaming.
Despite being written with defined chapter themes, the author often goes off on a tangent.
Sadly, the pertinent question remains somewhat unanswered. I don’t want to dismiss the book outright, but quite some nipping and tucking is required.

This is a very interesting book, written so that it is easily accessible to someone who has little or no knowledge of neuroscience. I was fascinated by the section on lucid dreaming, and by the explanation that we cannot help dreaming because it is part of what makes us human. The descriptions of the different stages of sleep and the importance of each has helped me to make better sense of my daily Fitbit sleep analysis. The author's discussion about the meaning of dreams was especially comforting to someone who has always been a bit sceptical of off-the-shelf dream interpretations.
The book is very well-referenced with a lengthy section on sources for anyone who wishes to dig deeper. I assume that future editions will take account of as yet unpublished material as research into this thought-provoking topic progresses.

I enjoyed my time with this which is always a plus, it's written in an easy to comprehend style with clearly laid out explanations. I thoroughly enjoyed the physiology part because that's the thing that drew me in in the first place. In the end I am underwhelmed because the question at the heart of this, also the title of the book, was not answered to my satisfaction. In the beginning strides were made to try and answer it but we sadly veered off the path. I found the chapter on nightmares to be the most intriguing and would recommend anyone who comes across this book to peruse it. A pro for it is that it gave me somethings to look into further and research on my own time. To that point I am looking for books that cover this topic further and would appreciate recommendations. 

CW: mention of suicide

I have inadvertently landed on a reading theme this month - dreams. Having read a more creative approach to understanding your dreams; this book offered a contrasting scientific explanation which was interesting to read.

The author draws on his background as a neuroscientist to explore the world of dreams - what are they? Why do we have them?

This book achieves a great balance of delivering scientific explanations but in a way that is accessible and understandable to someone who doesn’t haven’t a great scientific understanding of(me!).

This isn’t a spiritual book but still holds dreams as holding importance in human life. I liked this and felt the author did a great job of offering weight to this area.

Some chapters were more interesting than others and I particularly liked the chapters about types of dreams, themes and I found it really interesting to learn about dreams that are particularly predominant across the world. The information around nightmares was also really interesting.

I think it probably would have been helpful to have more of understanding on neuroscience and I would probably have gained even more from this reading experience if I had this background however I still felt I understood a lot of the book and it didn’t interrupt my reading experience.

This was a fascinating read

Requested this because of a vague interest and wanting to readcmore non fiction. Was not expecting a thorough scientific sounding over theories and studies regarding dreaming, it's link to our health, mental health and emotional processing. What a fascinating book.

Dr Rahul Jandial MD PhD bestselling author, neurosurgeon and neuroscientist holds out the promise by delving "into the dreaming brain and shares stories from his own practice to show the astonishing impact that dreams having on our waking life. He explains how dreaming of an exam might help you score up to 20% higher, why taking a long nap could make you better at problem-solving, and even that certain dream disorders can warn you of serious diseases like Parkinson's years ahead of other symptoms" .

It is a beautifully written book with pages of research references and further reading which confirms its scholarly foundation and evidence base. What is even more valuable is his practice experiences and views weaved into the wide range of topics that he covers. If you are interested in a mystical or spiritual take on dreams you may be disappointed but Dr Jandial also provides guidance on lucid dreaming: He "offers clear and compelling advice, backed by new research, to become a lucid dreamer," In a nutshell the subtitle of the book sums up what it is all about: What your sleeping brain reveals about your waking life. Everyone can benefit from knowing more about this vital part of our lives, certainly a book I will treasure.

Dr WJAlladin, Founding Editor in Chief, Counselling Psychology Quarterly: An International Journal of Theory Research and Practice‹

Book Review: This Is Why You Dream by Rahul Jandial

This intriguing book is 100% worth the read. Written by a brain surgeon, it examines dreams in a way that’s backed by neuroscience, but loses none of dreams’ mystery and wonder.

The book begins as it means to go on, with Jandial saying that “We have evolved to dream…We don’t choose to dream. We need to dream.”

First of all, it’s so refreshing to read a book on dreaming that somehow simultaneously values dreaming and its process, but also unravels the science behind it at the same time. And he conveys the science with an ease and style that anyone can understand.

Janidel of course talks about which neural networks (brain circuits) are activated and not activated during dreaming, and which neurotransmitter systems are implicated.

He talks about the many benefits of dreaming. How it can be a form of therapy, helping you to feel and accept your emotions. How it can be a means of testing social strategies, while not losing friends in real life. Even how your dreams can be an early warning sign of disorder.

Jandiel discusses which dreams are the most common across the globe, and how certain themes are predominant across different cultures. There are also chapters on the need for nightmares, dreaming and creativity, and erotic dreams.

The book also explains why you needn’t bother with the likes of dream dictionaries, and it has a how-to element where it explains several methods to induce lucid dreaming.

But where things become even more interesting is where Jandiel talks about the future of dreaming. This begins with discussion about shocking methods already used to make people dream about particular brands. The two examples were from Coors beer and Burger King.

This calls into question fundamental human rights, such as freedom of thought. And it raises questions about whether, at some point, we’ll have to pay extra for streaming services that promise ad-free dreaming.

Jandial also broaches the subject of brain-tech and other devices that could be used to, for example, induce lucid dreaming, or encourage particular dream content. This makes it a very timely book, given that tycoon Elon Musk is already recruiting applicants for human testing of Neuralink, a brain-computer interface.

Even if you’re not a neuroscience enthusiast like myself, you can gain real value from this book, and learn to view your dreaming world in a new light.

I was expecting this to be another dream analysis book but I was very pleasantly surprised. I found it intriguing and informative and it explained the science around how your brain works and how it processes information in a user friendly way that even a novice could understand. I feel I know a lot more now about how the brain works and how we can infiltrate our dreams and use them to our advantage. Highly recommended.

This book is fascinating! I really enjoyed all the scientific studies behind the dreams and brain surgeries and everything was explained well. I particularly enjoy the lucid dreaming and PTSD sections.

This book offers an informative, interesting insight into dreams, the brain and why we dream.

The author is a credible expert and although at times I didn’t find it an easy read, it’s overall an interesting book that made me want to explore more of the subject matter.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the opportunity to preview.

Interesting and well written account of the latest neuroscience on dreaming. There are lots of practical and simple tips on how to prime oneself for certain types of dreams and especially how to improve dream recall. The links between mental health and dreaming were surprising and particularly interesting, as were the historical sources on dreams, The only slight drawback of the book is that it reveals all too clearly how shockingly little we actually do know about the realm of dreams. But Rahul Jandial entertainingly and instructively covers as much of what we do currently know as possible. Special thanks to Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for a no obligation advance review copy.

Not a book for telling you what your dreams mean but understanding how and why we dream.
The complex nature of our brain . Interesting and fascinating.

A fascinating exploration of why we dream. This is a very scientific read which, not being from a science background, I found to be heavy going in places. Some interesting points for the layman though.