Michael Pollan Bestselling 3 Books Set - How to Change Your Mind, This Is Your Mind on Plants, The Omnivore's Dilemma

by Michael Pollan

This Michael Pollan Bestselling 3 Books Set 1. How to Change Your What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence 9780735224155 2. This Is Your Mind on Plants 9780593296929 3. The Omnivore's A Natural History of Four Meals 9780143038580

920 pages, Paperback

Published January 9, 2023

About the author

Michael Pollan is an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the University of California, Berkeley, where he is also the director of the Knight Program in Science and Environmental Journalism.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Francis Cannata · Rating 5 out of 5]

"How to Change Your Mind" combines Neuroscience, psychoanalysis and spirituality in a very interesting way. The pathophysiology, neurology and history of psychedelics are explored in detail.

A common theme of the book is the role the ego plays in consciousness and our perception of reality and how- when the default mode networks shuts down during a psychedelic experience - the conscious brain gets direct access to our subconscious and pieces of our past that are locked away.

Pollan describes his personal psychedelic trip on psilocybin with such eloquence. He has a beautiful grasp of the English language and describing his journey.

I was surprised to learn that psychedelics are far more frightening to people than they are dangerous. Many of the most notorious perils are either exaggerated or mythical. It is virtually impossible to die from an overdose of LSD or psilocybin for example. Neither drug is addictive and repeated use by people robs the drugs of their effect. However bad trips are very real and can be one of the most challenging experiences of a lifetime.

Pollen delves into the idea of leaning into the experience. "When tripping instead of turning away from any monster that appears, move toward it, stand your ground, and demand to know what are you doing in my mind. What do you have to teach me."

One interesting theory behind Western stigma against psychedelics is that organized religion fears it's ability to give people direct access to the divine. "In the Catholic Church, for example, access to the Divine is mediated through a priest."

Interesting concepts introduced in the book which might spark further exploration include hypnogogic consciousness, the after glow, the stoned ape theory, and the pop-out effect.

[Josie Link · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan, and I really enjoyed it. The book strikes a great balance between personal storytelling and scientific exploration, making complex topics accessible to the average reader without feeling overwhelming. Pollan’s openness and honesty stood out to me, especially in his interviews—he approaches his subjects with genuine curiosity and thoughtful reflection, which I really appreciated. One aspect I didn’t love, though it’s more of a personal preference than a flaw, was what I interpreted as his tendency to play devil’s advocate for the medicalization and commercialization of these plants. While I understand his perspective and need to remain objective, I personally believe the focus should be more on public education & helping people learn how to use these substances safely and effectively rather than gatekeeping access through institutions. I’m not a fan of ever advocating for systems that prioritize profit over people, so I wish he had taken a different stance on that. That said, this book was a fascinating read, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the history, science, and potential of psychedelics.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's some mistakes here and there, like at the very very end of the book perpetuating the common misunderstanding that observing in quantum mechanics means that our *conscious awareness* is what breaks the state of superposition and such instead of the fact that to measure it we must interact with it in some way (and then it collapses), but fortunately he expresses this as something not of meaning and just one of his thoughts and doesn't impact the books quality in any way.

But the rest was very very solid, an absolutely invaluable look into the history of psychedelics, your brain, your ego, and definitely a part of the rise of mental illness in the western world and *even further.*

Took me to get used to the writing style as I'm definitely used to more "modern writing" but through this book I managed to amend my lost time of not reading and definitely super excited to have proven to myself that I can finish a book again and to really push through and make progress on my other queued books soon here.

Definitely a Must Read. Might add more on how this relates to my psychedelic experiences sometime, but that's a pretty difficult thing to put into words!

[Brandon Zimmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

So maybe I wasn't smart enough for this one because I had a lot of trouble following some of it. Lots of information and talks about his "trips". Goes into a lot of detail of different studies for sure. Made me interesting and wanting to see God myself.

[Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read the one on modern medical psychedelics, lots of interesting stuff. Crazy how the anti drug movement stopped the use of so many drugs for medical research, research that is just now starting to pick back up 30+ years later

[Gabriel Carvalho · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book filled with very detailed experiences of individuals experiences with psychedelics. The author covers years of trials and studies analysing experiences and psychological insights of their possible interpretations.

[Meven Blandin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent livre sur l’histoire des psychédéliques. Remplit d’histoires fascinantes.

N.B : Pollan a fait énormement de plagiat pour ce livre. Une partie importante du travail revient a l’historienne Erika Dyck.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The neuroscience and history of psychedelics and using it for therapy. Solid overview.