From a foremost expert on the science of emotions, a groundbreaking exploration into the history, psychology and meaning of awe
Award-winning social psychologist Dacher Keltner has spent his career speaking to different groups of people, from schoolchildren to prisoners to healthcare workers, about happiness and the good life. These conversations and his pioneering research into the science of emotion have convinced him that happiness comes down to one thing: finding awe.
In Awe, Dacher Keltner presents a radical investigation into this elusive emotion, which allows us to collaborate with others, to open our minds to wonder, and to see the deep patterns of life. Drawing on his own scientific research into how awe transforms our brains and bodies, alongside an examination of awe across history, culture, and within his own life during a period of immense grief, Keltner shows us how cultivating wonder in our everyday life leads us to appreciate what is most humane in our human nature. The book includes intensely moving, deeply personal stories of awe from people all over the world-doctors and veterans, environmentalists and poets, indigenous scholars and hospice workers, ministers and midwives.
At turns radical and profound, brimming with enlightening and practical insights, Awe is our field guide for how to uncover everyday wonder as a vital force within our lives.
Review
Awe is awesome in both senses: a superb analysis of an emotion that is strongly felt but poorly understood, with a showcase of examples that remind us of what is worthy of our awe -- Steven Pinker
It is rare for a book to dive into a single emotion to analyze it from every possible angle. Dacher Keltner's expertise makes it a fascinating and stimulating journey to recognize awe as a mysterious force in our lives -- Frans de Waal
An engaging and insightful exploration of the ordinary magic that connects us to the world, to each other, and to the meanings of our lives. The 'science of wow' has finally arrived -- Daniel Gilbert
Your goosebumps when you listen to Beethoven; your wonder as you behold the Grand Canyon; your amazement at the sheer perfection of a baby's tiny foot. You've probably sensed that such moments of awe are some of the most profound experiences ever to happen to you. But if you've ever wondered where these moments come from, what they mean, and how to experience them more often: there is no better guide than Dacher Keltner, the great and wise Berkeley psychologist. Read this book to connect with your highest self -- Susan Cain
We need more awe in our lives, and Dacher Keltner has written the definitive book on where to find it. As a preeminent expert on the science of awe, he does a masterful job demystifying this powerful emotion and unpacking how it both elevates us and grounds us -- Adam Grant
Through powerful and compelling stories of transformation and passion, Keltner expertly introduces us to feel the mighty emotion of AWE-something we all need more of in our lives -- Pete Docter
This extraordinary book explores the power of awe and amazement in our lives and in the life of this world. It reveals the gift of awe from the perspectives of science, the self, and society. Written with passion and clarity, it is a book that itself nourishes awe and turns us toward our lives with fresh eyes and an open heart -- Roshi Joan Halifax
Our troubling times, our clickbait media, even our own habits of mind, blanket our consciousness with the negative and threatening in life. This book is a counter force. Powerful, erudite, rooted in brilliant research, but always fascinatingly accessible, it uplifts the wonderful in life. From the beauty of movement in sports to the moral courage of a friend, it's a guide to how to see and experience the wonder that is always all around us. It balances consciousness. It has been a long time since I've read anything as inspiring. I'd say race to read it. You won't be disappointed -- Claude M. Steele
Dacher Keltner has written a deeply personal, scientifically brilliant treatise on an emotion he convinces us we need to experience more often in our daily lives -- Richard E. Nisbett
A researcher who has taught us new ways to think about generosity and cooperation has turned his attention to one of the most understudied emotions of all, awe. Eye-opening and mind expanding -- Sarah Blaffer Hrdy
About the Author
Dacher Keltner is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, and the faculty director of the Greater Good Science Center. A renowned expert in the science of human emotion and consultant to Pixar's Inside Out, Dr Keltner studies compassion and awe, as well as issues of power, status, inequality and social class. He is the author of The Power Paradox and the bestselling Born to Be Good, and the co-editor of The Compassionate Instinct.
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