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Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Ellyn Jameson (Narrator), Susan Magsamen (Author), Ivy Ross (Author),
4.5 out of 5 stars (954)
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A life-altering, science-backed exploration of the healing power of art, which has now been proven to help lower stress, supercharge learning and creativity, extend your lifespan, and combat loneliness.

“This book blew my mind!”—Angela Duckworth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Grit

A BLOOMBERG BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR Finalist for the Inc. Non-Obvious Book Award and the Porchlight Business Book Award

What is art? Many of us think of the arts as entertainment—a luxury of some kind. In Your Brain on Art, authors Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross show how activities from painting and dancing to expressive writing, architecture, and more are essential to our lives.

We’re on the verge of a cultural shift in which the arts can deliver potent, accessible, and proven solutions for the well-being of everyone. Magsamen and Ross offer compelling research that shows how engaging in an art project for as little as forty-five minutes reduces the stress hormone cortisol, no matter your skill level, and just one art experience per month can extend your life by ten years. They expand our understanding of how playing music builds cognitive skills and enhances learning; the vibrations of a tuning fork create sound waves to counteract stress; virtual reality can provide cutting-edge therapeutic benefit; and interactive exhibits dissolve the boundaries between art and viewers, engaging all of our senses and strengthening memory. Doctors have even been prescribing museum visits to address loneliness, dementia, and many other physical and mental health concerns.

Your Brain on Art is a portal into this new understanding about how the arts and aesthetics can help us transform traditional medicine, build healthier communities, and mend an aching planet.

Featuring conversations with artists such as David Byrne, Renée Fleming, and evolutionary biologist E. O. Wilson, Your Brain on Art is an authoritative guide to neuroaesthetics. The book weaves a tapestry of breakthrough research, insights from multidisciplinary pioneers, and compelling stories from people who are using the arts to enhance their lives.
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  1. Listening Length
    9 hours and 11 minutes
  2. Author
    Susan Magsamen, see all
  3. Narrator
    Ellyn Jameson
  4. Publication date
    March 21, 2023
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B0B63YBZWF
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
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Product details

Listening Length 9 hours and 11 minutes
Author Susan Magsamen, Ivy Ross
Narrator Ellyn Jameson
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date March 21, 2023
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B0B63YBZWF
Best Sellers Rank

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
954 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find this book engaging and deeply researched, with one noting how it brings scientific credence to its content. Moreover, they appreciate how it demonstrates the healing effects of art on mental health and physical well-being, while also unlocking creativity. Additionally, the book explores how art affects brain processes, with one customer mentioning how movements alter brainwave patterns. Customers describe the book as beautiful, with one noting its lovely tactile pages.
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54 customers mention readability, 49 positive, 5 negative
Customers find the book highly readable, describing it as mind-bogglingly good, interesting, and a must-read for everyone.
...Scientific in its lingo but artfully written. Great book. Buy it.Read more
This is An amazing book. I have worked with children and adults In my career, and I have shared This boll with many of them. The...Read more
A fascinating and engaging overview of neuroaestheticsRead more
...art affects the processes in the brain - it is pretty amazing and interesting. It validates a lot of what I thought I knew....Read more
45 customers mention research quality, 39 positive, 6 negative
Customers praise the book's research quality, finding it deeply researched and highly informative, with one customer noting how it brings scientific credence to the subject matter.
...This book is easy to read, well researched and a joy!! Great job and thank you for your dedication!Read more
...Engaging, informative and inspiring. Highly recommend!Read more
Well-researched book, providing lots of insights into how art affects and effects brain function under a variety of normal and abnormal situations.Read more
Deeply researched, always engaging, and beautifully presented, Your Brain on Art makes such a strong case for the transformative power of the arts...Read more
32 customers mention health, 31 positive, 1 negative
Customers find the book beneficial for health, noting that the arts can heal minds and bodies and improve mental health. One customer describes it as a life-affirming journey through the science of neuroaesthetics.
...Improve your health, well-being, relationships and your environment. Highly recommend!Read more
This book is an amazing resource that both informs and inspires. It is full of facts. research, supporting references, and abundant examples....Read more
...Engaging, informative and inspiring. Highly recommend!Read more
...what we instinctively know..that art is good for the brain, body and soul and for society!...Read more
19 customers mention value for money, 18 positive, 1 negative
Customers find the book to be a valuable resource, with one customer specifically noting its importance for those working in the arts.
...A beautiful and important book that will fuel and inspire your inner creator. Just read it.Read more
Very useful book. Names, practices, places, concepts, history and more. Cutting edge studies and information. I enjoy very much this masterpiece.Read more
This book is an amazing resource that both informs and inspires. It is full of facts. research, supporting references, and abundant examples....Read more
...This is important stuff.Read more
14 customers mention art value, 13 positive, 1 negative
Customers appreciate the book's exploration of how art positively affects the brain and its extraordinary value, with one customer noting how it builds an aesthetic tool kit.
Such a great book! Fond peace, make art!Read more
...If you are ever in doubt that art is worthwhile, this book will show you otherwise....Read more
...how the mind is positively affected by all the arts and hobbies that involve the arts...for healthy individuals and for those with memory loss, etc....Read more
...to read this book documenting from a scientific lense the extraordinary value art brings and a cultural shift of the importance and value art brings...Read more
12 customers mention creativity, 12 positive, 0 negative
Customers appreciate the book's focus on creativity, with several noting its ability to unlock creative potential, and one customer describing it as a must-read for creatives and educators.
...There are a few interesting ideas in the book, but you have to wade through too many (for my taste) stories to find them....Read more
...This book will inspire you to be more creative and will improve your health.Read more
...marriage and celebrates its progeny: health, wellness, community, innovation, empowerment. The book beckons us to join this celebration....Read more
Who knew..! Interesting concept that the ‘colors’ and ‘designs’ in your day to day view really affect how you function. Yes !...Read more
10 customers mention brain function, 9 positive, 1 negative
Customers appreciate how the book explains how art affects brain processes, with one customer noting that doodling feels good for the brain, while another mentions that movements alter brainwave patterns.
Your Brain on Art, is is a brilliant book with a good heart, a magnificent mind, and important work to do in the world....Read more
...book, providing lots of insights into how art affects and effects brain function under a variety of normal and abnormal situations.Read more
...from research into how certain colors, sounds and movements alter brainwave patterns to the ways neuroaesthetics is informing the practices of...Read more
I really enjoyed this book. I learned a lot about how art affects the processes in the brain - it is pretty amazing and interesting....Read more
9 customers mention beauty, 9 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book beautiful, with one mentioning that the pages were lovely to the touch.
It’s not about the end product —it’s about the process. A beautiful and important book that will fuel and inspire your inner creator. Just read it.Read more
Deeply researched, always engaging, and beautifully presented, Your Brain on Art makes such a strong case for the transformative power of the arts...Read more
...It's a pricey hardback, and was worth it to me. The pages were lovely to the touch and the insert art section printed on high-quality, glossy, thick...Read more
...art practitioner, this book helps to explain and validate the beauty and power of our innate creative expression.Read more
A Fascinating and Insightful Journey Into New and Beautiful Ways We Can Improve Our Wellbeing
5 out of 5 stars
A Fascinating and Insightful Journey Into New and Beautiful Ways We Can Improve Our Wellbeing
This is a fantastic and deeply engaging book that gives an incredible overview into neuroaesthetics and how everything we surround ourselves with has the ability to impact and improve our wellness. It's an easy and compelling read while also being super comprehensive and detailed - something that's hard to achieve. If you're at all into arts, design or health and want to learn more about how deeply these areas can actually affect us - I think you'll love this book.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Dr. Amy Climer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Packed with research and examples of why art matters
    Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2025
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    An excellent book that shares the research on how all types of art, from music to theatre to visual arts, affect all aspects of our lives. If you are ever in doubt that art is worthwhile, this book will show you otherwise. Not only is it worthwhile, but it's critical for us as humans to both make and experience art in various forms.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Review Master
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read For All
    Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2025
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    This book offers insight into the power of the arts and the importance of some form of art in everyday life for promoting health and well being. Must read.
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
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  • Donna Barton
    4.0 out of 5 stars How the arts can heal or minds and bodies.
    Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2025
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    Textbook style read, but very interesting. Worth the read to gain scientific understanding of how the brain and body benefit from exposure to the arts and why this is so important in finding peace, self- acceptance, and all types of healing. Recommend.
    3 people found this helpful
    Helpful
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  • JGram
    5.0 out of 5 stars Is your Day Pleasant or Dreary ?
    Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Who knew..! Interesting concept that the ‘colors’ and ‘designs’ in your day to day view really affect how you function. Yes ! Good easily understood Book.
    Helpful
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  • Delaware lady
    5.0 out of 5 stars Arts for everyone
    Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2025
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    This book offers reasons for the arts belonging in school and in therapy. So much good information!
    Helpful
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  • Leslie A. Ruby
    5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book!
    Reviewed in the United States on November 18, 2025
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Such a great book! Fond peace, make art!
    Helpful
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  • RJ
    3.0 out of 5 stars Good but WORDY
    Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2025
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I could have learned twice as much with half the words. I wished it had gotten more to the point. I certainly didn’t need all the stories.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Thomas Oppenheim
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Joyous Marriage of the Arts and Science!
    Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2023
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    Your Brain on Art, is is a brilliant book with a good heart, a magnificent mind, and important work to do in the world. In it we witness a wedding between the arts and science. The book announces the consummation of that marriage and celebrates its progeny: health, wellness, community, innovation, empowerment. The book beckons us to join this celebration. To quote from the book “Creative expression, the arts, and aesthetics serve a core purpose: To birth new thoughts, and ideas. To mirror back to one another what is important and what is needed. To weave together common threads of humanity. The arts empower us to reimagine, re-envision, and reconnect in order to create a better future together.” Thanks to this book we now know with scientific certitude what we hitherto only intuited: that the arts heal. Come one come all and join the party! Celebrate Your Brain on Art!
    30 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Kathleen Modrowski
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good Beginner Overview
    Reviewed in India on May 18, 2024
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    "Your Brain on Art" provides a good understanding of why ideas we have practiced intuitively are useful, such as Art as a way to build community.
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  • PamelaMac021
    5.0 out of 5 stars Art really does have an affect on your brain.
    Reviewed in Canada on October 19, 2025
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    Great and very insightful book
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  • Pamela
    5.0 out of 5 stars Artfully Brilliant!
    Reviewed in Singapore on October 2, 2025
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    A very accessible way to understand the effects of arts engagement on the brain’s development.
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  • Toshicello
    5.0 out of 5 stars 美しい
    Reviewed in Japan on August 26, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    美しい
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  • Cliente de Kindle
    5.0 out of 5 stars Genial!
    Reviewed in Mexico on July 30, 2024
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Lo recomiendo totalmente, la forna en la que se divide el libro hace que sea más fácil de leer, neuroarts como forma de hacer crecer nuestra sociedad
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