Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything
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- Create Date：2021-06-07 04:53:31
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Joshua Foer
- ISBN：0141032138
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Summary
'Be prepared to be amazed' Guardian
Can anyone get a perfect memory？
Joshua Foer used to be like most of us， forgetting phone numbers and mislaying keys。 Then he learnt the art of memory training， and a year later found himself in the finals of the US Memory Championship。 He also discovered a truth we often forget: that， even in an age of technology， memory is the key to everything we are。
In Moonwalking with Einstein he takes us on an astonishing journey through the mind， from ancient 'memory palace' techniques to neuroscience， from the man who can recall nine thousand books to another who constantly forgets who he is。 In doing so， Foer shows how we can all improve our memories。
'Captivating 。。。 engaging 。。。 smart and funny' The New York Times
'Delightful 。。。 uplifting 。。。 it shows that our minds can do extraordinary things' Wall Street Journal
'Great fun 。。。 a book worth remembering' Independent
'A lovely exploration of the ways that we preserve our lives and our world in the golden amber of human memory' New Scientist
Can anyone get a perfect memory？
Joshua Foer used to be like most of us， forgetting phone numbers and mislaying keys。 Then he learnt the art of memory training， and a year later found himself in the finals of the US Memory Championship。 He also discovered a truth we often forget: that， even in an age of technology， memory is the key to everything we are。
In Moonwalking with Einstein he takes us on an astonishing journey through the mind， from ancient 'memory palace' techniques to neuroscience， from the man who can recall nine thousand books to another who constantly forgets who he is。 In doing so， Foer shows how we can all improve our memories。
'Captivating 。。。 engaging 。。。 smart and funny' The New York Times
'Delightful 。。。 uplifting 。。。 it shows that our minds can do extraordinary things' Wall Street Journal
'Great fun 。。。 a book worth remembering' Independent
'A lovely exploration of the ways that we preserve our lives and our world in the golden amber of human memory' New Scientist
Reviews
Harikrishnan
，
A good and engaging read on a journalists journey to becoming a Memory Champion。 The book discusses the history of memory building and techniques adopted over time on the art of remembering whilst being grounded on the science behind memory building。 While the book does throw some practical tips on memory building， it is more of an autobiography than a guide towards helping the reader improve their memory。 In summary， this is a pretty decent and easy to read book that might entertain or be of in A good and engaging read on a journalists journey to becoming a Memory Champion。 The book discusses the history of memory building and techniques adopted over time on the art of remembering whilst being grounded on the science behind memory building。 While the book does throw some practical tips on memory building， it is more of an autobiography than a guide towards helping the reader improve their memory。 In summary， this is a pretty decent and easy to read book that might entertain or be of interest to a niche audience。 。。。more
Amit
，
A walk with the freaks could have been an alternative title。 The book is not only a look into the world of mental athletes， the geeks and the savants but also the journey of an equally gifted man， Joshua Foer， whose interest in the field of memory leads him to become a championship ace himself。 Foer writes about the history of memory （doesn’t that sound odd）， the skills of recall， the forgotten techniques of remembering （another oxymoron！） and all the tricks of the trade。 The interviews with som A walk with the freaks could have been an alternative title。 The book is not only a look into the world of mental athletes， the geeks and the savants but also the journey of an equally gifted man， Joshua Foer， whose interest in the field of memory leads him to become a championship ace himself。 Foer writes about the history of memory （doesn’t that sound odd）， the skills of recall， the forgotten techniques of remembering （another oxymoron！） and all the tricks of the trade。 The interviews with some of the champions and experts in marketing the art are lively。 The book is however tedious reading。 It could have been shorter and more coherent。 The reader grapples with intricate brain biology and details of health syndromes a little more than he is prepared for。 However， make no mistake， it is a “unforgettable” work！ 。。。more
Sumit Modi
，
The author tells about the power of brain that it can do anything which at first glance looks impossible。 It shackles the notion of tagging other person as born genius by giving various examples and facts。 A good read to become more aware of your enormous capabilities。
Sakarias Frette
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It was a fun book， not the best literature on the subject but good enough
Esther May
，
I love to learn more about memory。 This book was a great fit to fill my obsession。 Our brains are fascinating and to find out that there are memory championships and how they work was so interesting。 Such a fun read for me。
Adelyne
，
Very entertaining non-fiction on the journey towards becoming a memory champion， though not to be mistaken with actually having a good memory – which is actually quite different！ I bought this book after watching the documentary Memory Games， covering a similar topic （but produced at a different time I suspect， as the main players in the games were very different）， as I was interested in the journey that Foer promises。He starts out as simply an interested journalist， only to be told by one of th Very entertaining non-fiction on the journey towards becoming a memory champion， though not to be mistaken with actually having a good memory – which is actually quite different！ I bought this book after watching the documentary Memory Games， covering a similar topic （but produced at a different time I suspect， as the main players in the games were very different）， as I was interested in the journey that Foer promises。He starts out as simply an interested journalist， only to be told by one of the memory games contestants that anyone can learn the techniques too， and takes up the challenge to try it out。 I enjoyed reading about the journey， and I found his tales of how the memory works fascinating alongside descriptions of what it actually is like to compete in the championships – which like any sport is as much pressure management as it is actual technique。 Foer also covers in several chapters some fundamental techniques such as the memory palace or PAO， which I’d heard of but never looked it up beyond a name， and including what has always been my biggest question for the field i。e。 how to “clear” a memory palace。 His journey has made me interested to at least try the techniques， just for fun， though I appreciated how he acknowledged that the rise to the top requires a significant amount of time commitment， which will likely not have much practical utility outside the realms of the competition。 It was quite fun to read about the bizarre formats used in these championships though。A significant part of his journey also involves meeting a whole different range of people， including those outside the realm of competition – from claimed “savants” who have impeccable memory without training to those who have no working memory whatsoever – and I quite enjoyed reading about how these people were coping （or not even realising） the different ways that their memory works。 I liked how he was more than happy to call them out when he thought that things were not as they claimed， and is very open about this discussion in his book。 How well people have reviewed this one seems to hinge purely on one factor: What they had expected the book to be。 I think it is incorrectly classified as “self-help”， implying some element of teaching the reader to develop a better memory （which it is actually quite rubbish at） in many online stores and even on Goodreads， and I can see why one would be very disappointed if this were the expectation as even the subtitle implies as much。 And while there were inklings of suggesting otherwise， I thought Foer was looking to ride this expectation to some degree to boost book sales as he could have stated more explicitly， and earlier on， that this was not to be。 Coming off Memory Games though， I was interested in the journey specific to the competition， read this as though it were an autobiography written by an athlete in any other sport。 Hence， I found it very enjoyable as it also included elements of how the mind works and maximising this for benefit in competitions， and overall found it a very enjoyable read。 4。5 stars， rounded down as having read the book I think the subtitle is highly misleading and I don’t like it when authors do that！ 。。。more
Aisha Alhammadi
，
An interesting book which give you an insight of how we can practice to develop our memory。
Julia Arntson
，
Interesting to listen to。 No desire to improve my memory though。
Melissa Riley
，
The overall information about the history and techniques of memorization was interesting， but the author dragged things out more than I'd like。 The overall information about the history and techniques of memorization was interesting， but the author dragged things out more than I'd like。 。。。more
Delphine Liu
，
This is not what the book title suggests。 The title is way more interesting and the book is quite the opposite。 This book in a nutshell is about the trivia of preparing for memory competition and contestants’ little boring daily life， like how they drink in the bar。。。 I personally has no interest in these content。 I was expecting some memorizing skills， the book just keep beating the bushes， until 30% in， it introduces the skill which is to connect whatever u want to memorize with a unique vivid This is not what the book title suggests。 The title is way more interesting and the book is quite the opposite。 This book in a nutshell is about the trivia of preparing for memory competition and contestants’ little boring daily life， like how they drink in the bar。。。 I personally has no interest in these content。 I was expecting some memorizing skills， the book just keep beating the bushes， until 30% in， it introduces the skill which is to connect whatever u want to memorize with a unique vivid image。 That’s it。 That is the only skill throughout the book。 And personally i don’t think this skill is for me。 It helps with memory competition， but it doesn’t help with understanding， or being a more educated person。 The only interesting part of the book to me is the history of memory chapter。 。。。more
Jack
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Recommended by Collin W， fellow Hoo and founder of Water Cooler Trivia。 As a former quiz bowl captain and forever a trivia lover， I loved this fun journey of Joshua Foer， journalist turned US memory champion。 He investigates the Ancient Greek and Roman practices of the memory palaces， psychological studies of patients both prodigious and amnesic， and teaches a few simple tricks for remembering more。 My favorite parts centered around the techniques， the OK plateau （and how to keep going after tha Recommended by Collin W， fellow Hoo and founder of Water Cooler Trivia。 As a former quiz bowl captain and forever a trivia lover， I loved this fun journey of Joshua Foer， journalist turned US memory champion。 He investigates the Ancient Greek and Roman practices of the memory palaces， psychological studies of patients both prodigious and amnesic， and teaches a few simple tricks for remembering more。 My favorite parts centered around the techniques， the OK plateau （and how to keep going after that）， and the role of memorization in education。 The OK plateau applies to memorization but also all activities， and the message is clear: you can always be better。 As soon as Roger Bannister broke the four minute mile， many others immediately followed suit？ Same with memory records， and the ability we have to push our brains and skills。 Role of memorization in education today。 Rote memorization， the “kill and drill” methods， have been written off as too militaristic， teaching obedience and not critical thinking。 But Foer makes the case for memorization because it provides context。 If you don’t have anything （facts） to associate new lessons with， then it is harder to remember new things。 The more facts you have， the more you can associate new info to。 So much more in this fun book， and great for trivia maniacs and laymen alike！ 。。。more
Shafeef Omar
，
In this digital era where we are constantly bombarded with incessant information and data， it's easy to miss out and focus on what really matters。 When we have digital notes and spreadsheets to offload our memories into an artificial computer brain， is it truly worth to invest in ones memory？ For me， the answer is a resounding yes after reflecting on the author's arguments。 How we perceive the world and how we act in it are the products of how and what we remember。 What makes us human is our abi In this digital era where we are constantly bombarded with incessant information and data， it's easy to miss out and focus on what really matters。 When we have digital notes and spreadsheets to offload our memories into an artificial computer brain， is it truly worth to invest in ones memory？ For me， the answer is a resounding yes after reflecting on the author's arguments。 How we perceive the world and how we act in it are the products of how and what we remember。 What makes us human is our ability to make connections between previously unconnected notions and to create new ideas which depends on our memory。 Now more than ever， as the role of memory erodes from our culture， we need to cultivate our ability to remember。 As memories make us who we are。Another slightly digressed extraordinary condition discussed in the book is synesthesia， which totally blew my mind。 People with synesthesia - who maybe walking among us - have their senses interwined and perceive senses slightly different than normal people do。 Several musical artists are known to have this condition and many more out there who haven't yet realised that it's unique to only a few。 I wonder how many of the people I know have this condition。Key Concepts: Synesthesia， Skilled Memory Theory， 10000 Hours expert， Brain constraint: Magic Number 7， Chunking， Ed's expanding subjective time 💡（more chronological landmarks）， declarative and non-declarative memories， elaborative encoding， memory palaces， memoria rerum vs memoria verborum， Günther's method of memorizing poems， nonlinear associational memories， advent of externalising memories - books， intensive and extensive reading， lifelogging， Major System Technique （number memorization）， PAO system （number memorization）， the OK plateau and deliberate practice， Tony Buzan's Mind Mapping for note taking 。。。more
Joshua Crüsemann
，
Really fun to read， combining the authors road to be a "mental athlete" with research of how the memory works。 Really fun to read， combining the authors road to be a "mental athlete" with research of how the memory works。 。。。more
T
，
It's definitely an interesting journey。 It was a slow read for me but definitely worth a read。 I'm half tempted to try building a memory palace of my own（ah one can dream。。。） It's definitely an interesting journey。 It was a slow read for me but definitely worth a read。 I'm half tempted to try building a memory palace of my own（ah one can dream。。。） 。。。more
Farhan
，
Not working at all。
Kevin Wu
，
An amazing story that gives not only the captivating narrative of the author's journey in becoming the American memory champion， but also an honest opinion on memory's role in society and how one should spend one's time。 Would recommend！ An amazing story that gives not only the captivating narrative of the author's journey in becoming the American memory champion， but also an honest opinion on memory's role in society and how one should spend one's time。 Would recommend！ 。。。more
Sahoda
，
In a word "Synesthesia" In a word "Synesthesia" 。。。more
Fernando
，
A very interesting dive into the aspects of memory。 Felt entertaining and informative。
Suraj
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A ground breaking book for me。。。 Gave me insights into the workings of human memory （short term vs long term， working memory， declarative （episodic/semantic） vs non declarative。 A window into our physical wiring which enables me to go easier on myself when i forget a name of place。 After all our working memory is limited by the magic number 7 + or - 2。 And forgetting is an active part of our long term memory。 A humorous and honest take on this loaded topic。 P。S: in case you are wondering， my mem A ground breaking book for me。。。 Gave me insights into the workings of human memory （short term vs long term， working memory， declarative （episodic/semantic） vs non declarative。 A window into our physical wiring which enables me to go easier on myself when i forget a name of place。 After all our working memory is limited by the magic number 7 + or - 2。 And forgetting is an active part of our long term memory。 A humorous and honest take on this loaded topic。 P。S: in case you are wondering， my memory didn't improve one bit after reading this。 But i did discover the power of visualisation， memory castles and chunking。 。。。more
Ann Dixon
，
I'm not sure what I was expecting from this book， but I was pleasantly surprised。 The book started with the history of learning and memorization， which I found more interesting than I thought I would。 I enjoyed the story of his journey from journalist to competitor in the US Memory Championship。 I wonder in what ways stories newscasters or journalists cover change their lives， similar to the way readers' lives are changed by reading books and articles。 Josh decided to receive coaching to compete I'm not sure what I was expecting from this book， but I was pleasantly surprised。 The book started with the history of learning and memorization， which I found more interesting than I thought I would。 I enjoyed the story of his journey from journalist to competitor in the US Memory Championship。 I wonder in what ways stories newscasters or journalists cover change their lives， similar to the way readers' lives are changed by reading books and articles。 Josh decided to receive coaching to compete in the US Memory Championship after covering the event for his job。 I find that fascinating。 I don't think I'll be compelled to use the memory techniques that helped him be competitive。 But it was interesting to learn about it， without reading a book specifically to learn the techniques。 I'm glad I read the book， but I don't think it's going to be on my list of books to recommend。 。。。more
Tristan Sailor
，
3。5
Ashley
，
Really interesting tidbits！ If only I could remember them all。
Anurag Gulati
，
Memory place in the mind， a book of wonder。 A book that helps us assess that we have the infinite power to remember anything and everything！！ Just some good training and hard work and maybe you can champion this art as well。
TG
，
Good concept and ideas but very dragged。
Katie Grainger
，
I don't read a whole lot of non-fiction because it just isn't my thing but when I picked up Moonwalking with Einstein I was intrigued。 The book is by journalist Joshua Foer who after attending the USA World memory championships decides he will try and improve his memory using tried and tested techniques。What follows in a really interesting book about how to improve your memory， the history associated with memory and the neuroscience of memory。 The book culminates with Foer back at the memory cha I don't read a whole lot of non-fiction because it just isn't my thing but when I picked up Moonwalking with Einstein I was intrigued。 The book is by journalist Joshua Foer who after attending the USA World memory championships decides he will try and improve his memory using tried and tested techniques。What follows in a really interesting book about how to improve your memory， the history associated with memory and the neuroscience of memory。 The book culminates with Foer back at the memory championships a year later to put to the test what he has learnt。 This book was really eye opening with some really interesting trivia and history thrown in。 It is well researched and the element of following Foer through his training and then to the Championships made the book all the more fascinating。 。。。more
F Colin
，
A fun， witty， and informative story of Joshua’s journey to discover the wonders of the human memory。
Merida
，
In all honesty I'd give this a 2。5。 The first half of the book is the most instructive if you're actually trying to figure out how to learn to remember。 The book as a whole follows the author's journey into becoming a memory champion。 He delves into the history of famous memory techniques， but not in enough detail for it to be instructive。 This book is better for folks who are curious about the history and the author's journey rather than learning about how to actually improve their own memories In all honesty I'd give this a 2。5。 The first half of the book is the most instructive if you're actually trying to figure out how to learn to remember。 The book as a whole follows the author's journey into becoming a memory champion。 He delves into the history of famous memory techniques， but not in enough detail for it to be instructive。 This book is better for folks who are curious about the history and the author's journey rather than learning about how to actually improve their own memories。Also be warned， towards the end of the book is an outdated view of Autism so any information you read about that should be taken with a grain of salt。 。。。more
Lawana
，
Interesting even if it doesn't improve your memoryI genuinely liked this book， and I liked the thoughtfulness the author clearly put into writing it。 Although the concept of memory palaces doesn't work for me， I got a lot of useful information out of this book。 I particularly liked how Joshua delved into how people learned in the past， and why memorization was 1。 probably easier and 2。 necessary （that's a huge oversimplification but I don't want to give too many details）。 My one big takeaway fro Interesting even if it doesn't improve your memoryI genuinely liked this book， and I liked the thoughtfulness the author clearly put into writing it。 Although the concept of memory palaces doesn't work for me， I got a lot of useful information out of this book。 I particularly liked how Joshua delved into how people learned in the past， and why memorization was 1。 probably easier and 2。 necessary （that's a huge oversimplification but I don't want to give too many details）。 My one big takeaway from this book is the benefit of being mindful when you're learning， something that I often struggle with。 Ironically， right before starting this book I had made the resolution to start taking notes/highlights on books I read so that I can actually easily reference the things I liked （not necessarily remember them outright， but easily referenced is fine for me）， and this was a great book to start doing that with。 。。。more
Gerardo Daniel Jiménez
，
Hermoso libro sobre la memoria
Derek
，