The Source

Subtitle: The Secrets of the Universe, the Science of the Brain

Author: Tara Swart, MD, PhD

Genre: Nonfiction, Science, Self-Help

Format: Digital Purchase

Publish Date: October 2019

Read: July 2024

Favorite Quote: We live a life dominated by stress and are too busy to really take notice of who we are, where we are going and what we want from life. We are now at a moment where technology will disrupt our minds and bodies more than we can begin to imagine.

Synopsis: Self-help books help readers change their lives, often for the better. Some of these changes are through the “power of positive thinking” or “waking up at 5am” and authors share anecdotal and loose evidence to support the claim. The Source combines neuroscience and the law of attraction to help readers understand the science of how “manifestation” works.

Why does this book beguile? I am a big fan of both neuroscience and woo-woo self-help books. The more I can understand how my brain—and other people’s brains—works, the more aware, empathetic, and compassionate I can be. You can imagine my excitement when I learned about this book’s premise!

If you’ve never read a neuroscientific self-help book before, The Source is a good place to start. However, underlying the explanation of neural pathways and the synapses that help you recognize opportunity and desires, there’s an element of toxic positivity to this book.

I get it. It’s got to be super hard to write an uplifting book while acknowledging all the trauma and rejection readers experience specific to their lives.

And yet…

Trauma and neurodivergence are a big part of people’s lives - which incidentally is why people often read self-help books: to overcome trauma and manage neurodivergence (even if they don’t realize that’s what they are doing). The Source, while interesting and lightly helpful (just think positive thoughts, and you’ll rewire your brain), lacks the nuance people need to make lasting change. Swart touches on difficult times in her life, but the more humans learn about the mind-body connection, the more we know we have to actually heal from our past, not just Peter Pan our way out of it.

Rating: 3/5

Link*: The Source: The Secrets of the Universe, the Science of the Brain by Tara Swart

If you’re interested in this, read*: Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. by Brene Brown