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The Stories of Your Life
- Author
- Ben Ambridge
- Narrator
- Ben Ambridge
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Publish Date
- 5 September 2024
- Run Time
- 8 hours 18 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
- Rating
- 3.0 (1 review)
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What to expect
'Fascinating, entertaining and deeply smart' – Will Storr, bestselling author of The Status Game
Wars, pandemics, Brexit, Elon Musk, the impending doom of our species, the enduring popularity of Ted Lasso – we live in confusing and uncertain times. Won’t someone make it all make sense?
In The Stories of Your Life, bestselling author Ben Ambridge explains that the often-bizarre behaviour of individuals, organizations and even whole countries makes perfect sense, once we understand them in terms of stories. Through generations of storytelling, we have together condensed the human experience into just eight distinct stories. And whether we’re pitching a product, bidding to become president, or simply trying to find love and happiness, we do so by retelling ourselves, and each other, one of these stories.
Using real-life examples, psychological research and our favourite stories, The Stories of Your Life will teach you:
- The 'recipes' behind these powerful narratives
- How the plots of stories like The Lord of the Rings (Quest), Ted Lasso (Untangled) and Macbeth (Icarus) follow these recipes
- How these same plots play out in real life, from addiction (Monster) to sporting rivalries (Feud) and dramatic rescues (Hole)
- The psychological science that explains why these stories are so compelling
A guide to help you understand the world around you, The Stories of Your Life shares fascinating lessons about the nature of humanity, the power of psychology and the way we see ourselves.
'Ambridge expertly decodes and deciphers [the stories of our lives] so we can all benefit and grow' – Matt Abrahams, author of Think Faster Talk Smarter
Critics Review
-
A fascinating, entertaining and deeply smart journey into the storytelling brain
Will Storr, bestselling author of The Status Game and The Science of Storytelling
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Stories are essential for human beings. They allow us to learn, to connect, to empathize. The best stories follow structures that catalyze and amplify their power. In The Stories of Your Life, Ben Ambridge decodes and deciphers these master plots so we all can benefit and grow
Matt Abrahams, author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter and host of Think Fast, Talk Smart
-
Life - and the quite appalling behaviour of everyone I know - finally makes sense. Read this remarkable book
Andrew Gold, author of The Psychology of Secrets and host of Heretics
User Reviews
Book 3.0
Narration 3.0
-
3.0 3.0
I have given up on this half way through feeling disappointed. I'm sure it is well written and full of fascinating insights if you are interested in the subjects it covers. There are detailed accounts of plots from literature and film with lengthy quotations. The examples given of how these stories play out in real life are taken from politics and commerce (brands) rather than individual psychology which is what I had been expecting.
jackdor 2025-03-08
Details
- Author
- Ben Ambridge
- Narrator
- Ben Ambridge
- Duration
- 8 hours 18 minutes
- Release Date
- 5 September 2024
- ISBN
- 9781035018420
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Pan Macmillan
- Genre
- Cognitive and behavioural neuroscience, Sociolinguistics, Popular culture, Popular psychology
- Rating
- 3.0(1 review)
- Narration
- 3.0(1 review)
Synopsis
Every aspect of human behaviour is part of a story – by understanding the stories, you can understand life itself. Read by the author, Ben Ambridge.'Fascinating, entertaining and deeply smart' – Will Storr, bestselling author of The Status GameWars, pandemics, Brexit, Elon Musk, the impending doom of our species, the enduring popularity of Ted Lasso – we live in confusing and uncertain times. Won’t someone make it all make sense?In The Stories of Your Life, bestselling author Ben Ambridge explains that the often-bizarre behaviour of individuals, organizations and even whole countries makes perfect sense, once we understand them in terms of stories. Through generations of storytelling, we have together condensed the human experience into just eight distinct stories. And whether we’re pitching a product, bidding to become president, or simply trying to find love and happiness, we do so by retelling ourselves, and each other, one of these stories.Using real-life examples, psychological research and our favourite stories, The Stories of Your Life will teach you:The 'recipes' behind these powerful narrativesHow the plots of stories like The Lord of the Rings (Quest), Ted Lasso (Untangled) and Macbeth (Icarus) follow these recipesHow these same plots play out in real life, from addiction (Monster) to sporting rivalries (Feud) and dramatic rescues (Hole)The psychological science that explains why these stories are so compellingA guide to help you understand the world around you, The Stories of Your Life shares fascinating lessons about the nature of humanity, the power of psychology and the way we see ourselves.'Ambridge expertly decodes and deciphers [the stories of our lives] so we can all benefit and grow' – Matt Abrahams, author of Think Faster Talk Smarter
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