Reviews

Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor

laura_loves_lit's review

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informative medium-paced

4.0

dekaj's review against another edition

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1.0

Lets start with the positive; the discussion on noese breathing VS mouth breathing was quite interesting, and I look forward to reading more on if and how this is connected to snoring, sleep apnea and asthma.

That aside, this book is not science! And pretending that it is is frankly quite disturbing.
This is a book of the authors personal experiences, which are interesting enough, but the "science" is just anecdotal events, and what seems like cherry-picking of data that can support the author's claims.

vacantbones's review against another edition

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2.0

While I was intrigued by the concepts presented in this book, I ultimately found myself dreading coming back to it every day. I wasn't at all drawn into the way the book was written and I was more bored than anything else.

I'm still interested in trying some of the less radical breathing techniques found in the back of the book, and I'll revise my rating as needed, but I'm really bummed by how much I didn't like this one.

heidilreads's review against another edition

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3.0

As a person who has annoyingly inflamed sinuses and probably sleep apnea -undiagnosed as of yet, I was looking forward to learning something... Especially since the author proclaims how much healing reading this book will bring. I think it's an interesting journey, but I don't feel like he finished the journey and I'm not on board with his claims.

airclay3's review

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This is sounding more and more like fake science. 

shermreads's review against another edition

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5.0

a fascinating and easy read!! I don’t think I’ve ever breathed so well than while reading this book

shopping12's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing fast-paced

5.0

alreadyemily's review against another edition

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4.0

Interesting book, fascinating really.

Note for audiobook version: James Nestor wrote a neat book and should be commended. I don't recommend that he narrate books.

eringow's review

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informative medium-paced

2.5

emperfectionist's review against another edition

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3.0

This pop-science overview of breath and breathing has some really fascinating facts and engaging discussions about what we know and don't know about how breath works in the body. This is more of an overview, but it provides resources if you want to dig deeper. I enjoyed reading this book and learning more about modern and ancient understandings of breath work. Although, some of the science delivered feels sensationalized. I appreciate Nestor's enthusiasm and dedication to his subject, however there are times when he could be more upfront about the limitations of the health benefits of breathing techniques.