As a chronic overthinker, I really liked the premise of this book. In an age where people are constantly on edge and second-guessing their every move, the moves of those around them, I was looking forward to learning more about the psychology behind these phenomena. As intriguing as this book was, it didn't hold my interest the way I thought it would. Each chapter was meant to uncover a new psychological trap of the (typically American) psyche, but it felt repetitive. You can tell Montell wants to be (or is?) a novelist with her overuse of flowery language, idioms, and similes. If you are brand-new to the psychology of our "chronically online" society, this book may be eye-opening for you. If you aren't, I don't think you'll learn much.

2.5 Rounded Up.

I received an advanced copy of The Age of Magical Overthinking by Amanda Montell from the publisher Atria Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Montell has written two books that are based in both linguistic and sociological studies and now she’s using this information to study the human mind. The concept of magical thinking as defined here is the idea that your internal thoughts can affect unrelated events in your external life. This kind of thinking is like manifesting your way out of poverty, or beating cancer with positive vows, or how do it yourself lifestyle might just save you in the apocalypse. Here Montell explores this thinking and those times where it seemingly works but also the danger it can cause.

I was very underwhelmed. I thought this book would be more based in fact or science, but really this book reads as a memoir or essay collection. I think that the fact it’s being kind of pitched as a social science book, it seems problematic. If it was a collection of essays, I think it would be less problematic.

It also feels incomplete again, perhaps because I’m waiting for more facts.

"The Age of Magical Overthinking" by Amanda Montell is a witty and insightful observation of the ways in which language can both empower and constrain us. Montell's sharp wit and engaging writing style make even the most complex linguistic concepts accessible and entertaining, ensuring that readers will come away with a newfound appreciation for the power of words. One of the book's greatest strengths is its blend of academic research and real-world examples. Montell doesn't shy away from acknowledging her own biases and blind spots, and she invites readers to interrogate their own assumptions and preconceptions about language and communication. The book is a thought-provoking and immensely entertaining read that offers valuable insights into the power and potential of language. A few chapters seemed to meander while explaining different biases, so I wish they were a bit more focused. Overall very interesting!

Thank you Netgalley for this eARC!

Amanda Montell doesn't miss. I've read her previous books and listen to her podcast and her commentary and analysis is always such a good balance of sharp while still being open minded to new information. Her work is compulsively readable but I do recommend the audiobook version for a podcast like feel.

An absolutely engaging look at the term "magical thinking" and what this phenomenon has morphed into through decades. The ideas of manifestation and the powers beyond our control that have such a hold on society, especially the younger generations that come up in this type of environment.

"This was my version of the daily morning newspaper with a cup of coffee."

I wasn’t familiar with Amanda Montell before but this cover is fantastic— simple case of judging a book by its cover.

Some chapters were very interesting and I did learn a lot about various biases/effects. Overall I felt a little let down by the book, which is odd, because like I said, I wasn’t familiar with Montell so I didn’t have any specific expectations. I am interested in listening to a few episodes of her podcast though.

I really enjoy Montell's book, as I did Culti-ish. This goes over psych 101 cognitive biases, so I mildly wish there was more that I was learning, but Montell tells great stories too.

Amanda Montell’s writing is absolutely captivating. Her humor is so whitty and relatable. I’m so glad I read Cultish before I read this, because of all the references it felt like a continuation of that book. I really love how she ties in aspects of her personal life.. As well, with the research she put into it, makes the topics she’s discussion pack a heavier punch.

This book felt like a memoir, self help, and a sociology book all tied into one. It really emulated how hard it is to be a human right now, in the age of over information!

I am a big fan of Amanda’s work, but felt that this book was a bit underwhelming. There were some chapters that I was waiting to get through and some that were enjoyable. I definitely enjoy her podcast and her second book better. On the cons side of things, the book seemed a bit too wordy and at some points repetitive. I hope that if Amanda writes another book I’ll end up liking it more. For now, I’m going to stick to listening to the podcast.

The Age of Magical Overthinking by @amanda_montell

The writing style of this book is so effortlessly cool, a mix of nonfiction infused with Amanda’s insights making it memoir-esque meets psychology. Blending history and pop culture with personal life to explore magical thinking.

I love that each chapter explores something new and the fun chapter names made me interested to continue my read.

This is a book I want to listen to on audiobook, I have already placed my hold at the library! And the cover with the colours is absolutely gorgeous.

Thank you to @simonschusterca, @atriabooks and @netgalley for this copy

This is not my first Amanda Montell book, and I hope it won't be my last. Montell is a great researcher and storyteller; her books are easily digestible and entertaining. The Age of Magical Overthinking was no different, blending personal anecdotes with cultural criticism and pop culture references. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

The Age of Magical Thinking was not quite as successful for me as Amanda Montell's previous books. I still enjoyed it and the last two essays were the most impactful for me. For someone who is new to her work or new to some of the topics she wrote about in this book, this would probably be more enlightening and enjoyable. As someone who works in or adjacent to a field where many of these topics are discussed, it was a bit old hat or superficial for me personally. I do not expect that would be true for most and thus I have a bit of a biased take here.

Another incredible book by Amanda Montell! I loved being able to understand all the information Amanda delivered to us because it almost felt like I was talking to one of my friends. The pop culture references were top tier and they were so current without them being cringy. Overall, this was so fun and solidified Amanda as one of my auto-buy authors!

"what if the universe isn't for or against us? What if it's not that serious?"

while I feel like a lot of this wasn't new information for me, I still love how she is able to relate it to pop culture to make it more relatable and easier to understand. This one has so many highlightable quotes, is still very interesting, and is so well researched and organized. Plus, I'm a sucker for super niche nonfiction topics.

Thank you so much for the advanced copy.
I'm a huge fan of Montell's works so I was really excited to read this one.

And I was not disappointed. Not all of the main themes for each chapter were interesting to me, but all of the knowledge that came with it, the vast vocabulary and themes discussed made everything better.

I loved it and learned so much from it. And also, her writing style is right up my alley.

While I ultimately preferred Cultish, I loved this book. It was fascinating learning about all the ways we trick ourselves, a particularly prescient reminder in today’s Information Age. I knew when it opened up with Taylor Swift, I was in for a treat. I have a hard time describing what fell flat for me. Years later, I remember parts of Cultish and tell people about it. Weeks after finishing this, I feel as if I’ve forgotten it. Part of it is that I wasn’t as engaged with the text but I think too much of it was personal anecdotes/reflections. These added to my reading experience but didn’t give it staying power. But I still loved it!

This book was fun and interesting, as long as we don't try to take ourselves too seriously. The author examined different types of cognitive biases. From the halo effect (thinking someone we like is likable even in ways we don't know about), to sunken cost fallacy (staying with someone or involved in something because we already have 'so much' invested), to confirmation bias (the more we hear or read something, the more likely we are to believe it's true), our thought patterns can begin to feel like they're shaping the world, instead of the other way around.

The author had a great memoir-style of writing to make each example feel relatable. Do we really get to manifest a good result because we built up good karma by letting a car into traffic on our way to the office? I know I'm guilty of expecting more random good results when I feel like I'm being an exceptionally good person. Now I know I'm not alone in that idea.

Overall, the book was amusing, but it's hard to quantify what I really learned about cognitive bias and its effect on the world, or even my life. The book earned 3 out of 5 stars from me, and I'd be interested in checking out some of the author's previous works.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

In this series of essays, Amanda Montell describes various cognitive biases that contribute to phenomena we see and experience in social media, fandoms, politics, and our personal lives. I enjoy Montell’s casual and witty voice, and her reflections on our modern shared experiences. It did not feel overly judgmental, but more like a friend pointing out traps that you seem to have fallen into. I would call it a mix of memoir and pop psychology, and I liked that she tied the concepts back to her personal experience. Pick this one up if you’re looking for a series of personal essays on how internet and social media shape our shared experiences. If you are a disillusioned millennial who sometimes wonders why we idolize our pop stars, take on unrealistic projects, and catastrophize the news, you may see yourself in these pages as I did.

I love Amanda Montell and I so wanted to love this one, but it fell flat for me. It just didn't interest me as much as her other books and some parts were boring. Maybe I'll try to listen to it again one day via audiobook, I could see me enjoying it more that way.

Amanda Montell is one of my auto-buy authors and this book did not disappoint. What Montell does better than anyone else is she can break down difficult topics into relatable, bite sized chunks and make them interesting and fun. I wish I had this book when I was teaching public speaking to discuss logical fallacies.