Daniel Tammet is an autistic savant and author of Born on a Blue Day, an autobiography and an exploration into how his mind works. In Embracing the Wide Sky, he takes on the subject of not just savant minds, but the human mind in general.

While debunking the “we only use 10% of our brains” myth, Tammet shows that our brains are capable of a lot more than most of us use them for. Using both is own experience and information from the latest brain/mind research, he explains how we learn, how we remember things, and how we can remember things more easily. The part I found most fascinating was his description of how best to learn a new language- and it’s NOT how language is usually taught in school.

Tammet has an unusually lucid style of writing that can make technical information readily understandable to the reader with no prior knowledge of the subejct. This man would make an incredible teacher. Recommended for anyone looking for an insight into minds both savant and average.

A lightweight ramble, fun to read, though some of his conclusions and opinions are debatable. ( )