The theme here is summed up in the preface: half the challenges we face are self-caused—not through stupidity or laziness necessarily, but because of the very way the mind is, the way it works.
    Unlike most authors, Leary starts by telling us precisely what he means by “self”: the part of our mental apparatus which allows us to think consciously, makes possible introspection and the creation of a mental representation of ourselves (including how we think we look and sound to everyone else). Its downside though is that it also “…distorts our perceptions of the world, leads us to draw inaccurate conclusions about ourselves and other people, and thus prompts us to make bad decisions based on faulty information.” The bulk of the book then explores in some detail the nuts-and-bolts psychology of how this happens (and, at times, makes for uncomfortable reading).
    The self: it’s like looking at everything through a permanently distorting lens; it warps the way we view (and evaluate) both ourselves, other people and the world in general, while also leaving us unaware of any distortion. This self-reflecting apparatus is not in itself flawed and in the distant past was a runaway success; but the analogy the author uses is of our taste for sugars and fats—a helpful adaptation fifty-thousand years ago, but a liability in a world in which we live the way we do now.
    This book’s melodramatic title is misleading; the writing is measured, plain and very readable. And how refreshing: a 350-page psychology book without a single word of jargon in it anywhere. Its disconcerting message boils down to two facts. First, everyone—everyone, consistently and unavoidably—has a distorted picture of the world (and of ourselves). On its own, the consequences would be serious enough. But the second fact is that we also overestimate how distorted everyone else’s perceptions and beliefs are, while simultaneously—and just as consistently and unavoidably—underestimating our own. The result is…well, just switch on the TV News any day of the week. ( )