Why We Sleep

By: Matthew Walker

Narrated by: John Sackville

Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's Summary

The Top Ten 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 twenty-first-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 book, the first of its kind written by a scientific expert, Professor Matthew Walker explores twenty 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.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2017 Matthew Walker (P)2017 Penguin Books Ltd

Critic Reviews

"Vital... a life-raft." ( Guardian)

"A top sleep scientist argues that sleep is more important for our health than diet or exercise." ( The Times)

"It had a powerful effect on me." ( Observer)

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.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Excellent

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

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Essential reading for everyone!

The world needs to hear, understand and implement this book! The is essential information for all walks of life..

Will stay with you

A very important book written with style and simplicity. One of those books you find yourself banging on about ad nauseum because it relates to so many conversations you have in day to day life. Great narrator too, just the odd mispronunciation but not as many as most Audible books I've listened to lately.

Wow! Wow! Wow!

The best book of the 21 Century. Seriously! A must read for everyone. You can deduce a few things from the title and executive summary, but until you fully read it... Please read it!

Roman
CEO, Splento

extremely informative

gives explenatios clearly
cites studies and emperical evidence
definetly helped me improve my sleep

recomended

Now I know all about sleep!

I have been looking for different answers and always found small pieces of information here and there. In this book, there is everything you need to know and make your own conclusions

Everyone should read or listen.

Game changer for me, I understand more about sleep. After 4 weeks I improved my sleep a lot.

Eye Opening Topic - life changing

I will recommend this book to all my friends and relatives. Most of us are no longer sleeping long enough or well enough and this book explains all the reasons why we need to fix this. It’s life changing.

Is Sleep just for the Weak?

A hearty NO! Matthew’s 20+ years of sleep studying and psychological tests have delivered some of the biggest results for humans in the betterment of themselves, their safety and society. This is a must read(or listen) book for all who are interested in prolonging their life or taking steps so as not to shorten it. John narrates the book wonderfully and really brings the enthusiasm that Matthew Walker pens. From increasing you chance of fighting off the common cold to even improving your chances of surviving cancer “Why We Sleep?” is an insightful and motivating book.

21 of 21 people found this review helpful

Ground-breaking, so the flaws are forgivable

Potentially life changing, which you cannot say about many books. The science is illuminating and the evidence is extremely persuasive.

It is not without flaws. The futurology and social commentary is less convincing. If you spend much of a book setting out the facts, supported by evidence, in order to build an argument that is not widely understood, you endanger your overall message if you veer off into ideas and opinions. In that regard it also felt padded a little.

The narration is very good, if a little "high and mighty" in its tone.

But pay little attention to these flaws. The core of this book is truly profound, and may cause you to rethink how you live your life.

And if you want an executive summary: Get another 30-60 mins sleep per night. You won't regret it.

55 of 59 people found this review helpful

Facinating and useful

Sorting out my sleep patterns has been my main New Years resolution as I have come to the conclusion that most other things in my life will improve greatly once this is achieved.
But I hadn't realised the vast catalogue of problems sleep deprivation is causing in the developed world. And that almost all of us will be suffering from it to some degree.
This book is both very interesting in explaining the mechanism of sleep, and everything in our modern lives that have an influence on the quality of our sleep.
Concluding with a comprehensive list of everything we can do to free ourselves from the misery of tiredness and under performance in the day and sleeplessness at night.
I'm going to listen again. And this time I'm taking notes.

25 of 27 people found this review helpful

A life-changing book

Would you consider the audio edition of Why We Sleep to be better than the print version?

The narrator does an excellent job stressing the key phrased and pacing the narration in such a way that I believe I take away more information that I would have if I had read the book myself.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Of course everyone 'knows' that a good night's sleep is important, but my god the author brings together such a body of evidence that I'm left in no doubt of the benefits of 8 hours of natural sleep. You will never take sleep for granted again. I'm convinced that this book will save lives and the health of many people.

What about John Sackville’s performance did you like?

Well paced and a great voice.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It's more of an intellectual and scientific book, but the importance that sleep plays in our life comes across in a profound way.

Any additional comments?

The author encourages the reader to read/listen to the chapters in the order that appeals to them.

7 of 7 people found this review helpful

The most fascinating book I have read in 20 years

Would you listen to Why We Sleep again? Why?

Yes, and I am already (immediately after finishing it). The subject has changed my life and I want to ensure I took it all in first time!

Which scene did you most enjoy?

I cannot pick one chapter. They are all exceptional. The beauty of the writing is that you can dip in and out of chapters and read them in any order and they still make perfect sense. Fantastic!

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Sleep: Evolutionary Elixir (SEE for short!)

Any additional comments?

This book has already changed my life and continues to do so. It is no exaggeration to say it is the best book i have ever read/listened to. I am lucky in that I do not particularly suffer from sleep problems but, either way, the book is fascinating, interesting and informative. I could not recommend this book more highly.

12 of 13 people found this review helpful

Super interesting, lots of sleep science

I found this book really interesting. There's a load of information about how lack of sleep affects your health and performance in all sorts of ways. It made me think about my own sleep habits and some changes I could make to get better sleep.

It's well read and I think the chap's voice suits the content and tone of the book.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

Very interesting and possibly life changing book

Would you listen to Why We Sleep again? Why?

The deep and calm voice of the narrator makes this audiobook a pleasure to listen to. I will certainly re-listen to 'Why We Sleep' because it offers plenty of interesting information on the importance of sleep and it's packed with tips on how to make your sleep healthier; to make a full use of the knowledge the book offers, I need to listen to certain chapters again and take some notes.

Any additional comments?

The book is potentially life changing, especially if you happen to suffer from sleep deprivation and/or ill health potentially caused by it. It makes a very strong case for prioritising good sleep and it motivated me to care for myself and my family better. Of particular interest to me were the author's discussions of children's sleep, it's potential connection to ADHD and dangers of sleep deprivation in youngsters. I became a much more sleep-conscious parent as a result. I highly recommend this audiobook!

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Fantastic!

This audiobook has given me a lot of good advice and knowledge on how my daytime habits affect my sleeping habits.
Lots of research and stats, as well as 12 top tips for healthy sleep.
You need to dip in and out rather than listen in one go, but I would certainly recommend Matthew Walker's audio.

11 of 13 people found this review helpful

Discouraging for insomniacs

This book is full of fascinating information and studies about every aspect of sleep you can imagine from animals to humans at every stage of their lives. As someone who has suffered with poor sleep for years, I was keen to hear some ideas about how I can improve my sleep. A few things about this book really annoyed me though. The main thing was that throughout the book it is implied that reduced sleep is a 'lifestyle choice' for people who do not priortise it. This may be the case for some people but I am desperate for more sleep. It is also depressing to hear in detail how much irreparable damage my poor sleep has done to me over the years - it sounds like a terminal illness! Finally, it makes it sound like insomnia is easily treated by CBTi. I have not found this to be the case. It's going to be even harder for me to reduce my anxiety and challenge my negative thoughts about poor sleep having read this book. Having said that I will forget all about it soon anyway as poor memory is a major feature of poor sleep.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Superb

Any additional comments?

This book has completely changed my attitude to sleep - it presents a number of fascinating facts and new research into the science of sleep and debunks many myths associated with sleep. I was particularly alarmed by the facts associated with sleep and alcohol.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful