In this large format, bold and bright book the story of psychology is told in layman’s terms and all of the technical phrases are clearly explained. It is very visual and modern in design with lots of colour images and photographs, diagrams, charts and timelines, with the added bonus of significant quotes from psychologists artistically displayed. The book is very well laid out and visually appealing, and could be a coffee table book.
All of the pivotal developments and tests are covered in the organised chapters such as the inkblot test, the Stanford Prison experiment, conditioning, imprinting, child development, liberation, conformity, attachment and mental illness, ending with AI. All the leaders are there too, including Plato, Freud, Horney, Jung, Piaget and Kant to mention a few. None of the information is dry, so much so that when I picked it up intending to read a couple of chapters, I ended up reading the whole book in one sitting. Do not be put off by the potential size of the book: it is 320 large pages but they are beautifully arranged.
The book doesn’t designate one author but acknowledges a team of experts in compiling this work under the publisher. A stunning book for anyone remotely interested in humanity, social science or history. And being so presentable it also makes a great gift.
Published by DK on 6 August 2026.
Advance review copy supplied by the publisher.
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