• Why We Sleep

  • The New Science of Sleep and Dreams
  • By: Matthew Walker
  • Narrated by: John Sackville
  • Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (863 ratings)

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Why We Sleep  By  cover art

Why We Sleep

By: Matthew Walker
Narrated by: John Sackville
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Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

The number one Sunday Times best seller.

TLS, Observer, Sunday Times, FT, Guardian, Daily Mail and Evening Standard Books of the Year 2017.

Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker, read by John Sackville.

Includes a bonus PDF of graphs and diagrams.

Sleep is one of the most important aspects of our life, health and longevity and yet it is increasingly neglected in 21st century society, with devastating consequences: every major disease in the developed world - Alzheimer's, cancer, obesity, diabetes - has very strong causal links to deficient sleep.

Until very recently, science had no answer to the question of why we sleep, or what good it served, or why its absence is so damaging to our health. Compared to the other basic drives in life - eating, drinking and reproducing - the purpose of sleep remained elusive.

Now, in this audiobook, the first of its kind written by a scientific expert, Professor Matthew Walker explores 20 years of cutting-edge research to solve the mystery of why sleep matters. Looking at creatures from across the animal kingdom as well as major human studies, Why We Sleep delves in to everything from what really happens during REM sleep to how caffeine and alcohol affect sleep and why our sleep patterns change across a lifetime, transforming our appreciation of the extraordinary phenomenon that safeguards our existence.

©2017 Matthew Walker (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Astonishing...an amazing book...absolutely chocker full of things that we need to know." (Chris Evans)

"Matthew Walker is probably one of the most influential people on the planet." (Evening Standard)

"Startling, vital...a life-raft." (Guardian)

What listeners say about Why We Sleep

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    5 out of 5 stars

Informative with passionate narrator

I would recommend this book to anybody who is currently sleeping less than 7 hours per night and wants to find a shortcut to improving their life in all aspects. I found the information here enlightening and the evidence compelling.

The narrator is great too, he manages to imitate the various accents and also reads the sentences in a way that very accurately brings across the weight and meaning of the point that Matthew Walker is trying to bring across. I felt like the narrator was the writer himself.

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6 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars

Life changing

While the aim of this book is to get you to close your eyes it ultimately opens them....to the damage done to one’s own health and the public health of not getting enough sleep. Plenty of great tips on how to improve sleep.

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2 people found this helpful

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Amazing, why is this not compulsory!

so many applicable insights but so easy to know where to start. can't stop boring people with it over dinner!!

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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One of the best books

Enlightening! Every policy maker must read this book. Many times we skip straight to solutions. This book is all about the why and I believe it is vital that our why is clear. Why we sleep? Explains the importance of sleep, what improves its quality and what doesn't.

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1 person found this helpful

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Excellent

One of the best books I read in the last year! Everyone should read this book

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Everyone should read

This book is so insightful! I never knew sleep impacted so much of our lives… I will recommend this book to everyone I know!

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I am convinced, sleep is the solution.

Ok, I need more quality sleep. My life will be better if I sleep better. This book changed my life. Please excuse me, I need to get to bed. Sleep well.

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  • 10-12-23

Amazing, highly recommended

Very well researched.

One of the books which should be obligatory upon birth.

Excellent storytelling, great narration.
Simply a must, as elementary education.

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Everyone should know this stuff

This should be common knowledge taught at high school level. The fact that we don’t know it as a society is baffling. Life changing book.

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Too long but necessary

Great in-depth book. It is a long book but I can’t imagine what could have been left out to shorten it!

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