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Chapter 5 explores the relationship of
creativity, sleep, and forgetting. Small shares
recent studies that indicate that the brain takes
in many stimuli, growing what are called
“spines,” and that it is during sleep that sensory
inputs are sorted and many spines erased. Sleep
allows forgetting to take place, “lightening” the
mind. He posits that creativity is greatest “when
associations of what we do remember are kept
loose and playful by sleep-induced forgetting”
(p. 126) and that “forgetting unmoors us from
memories that weigh our minds down and
The two books
discussed in this
article were both
written to offer insights
and encouragement to
those concerned about
forgetting.
prevent flights of fancy and creativity” (p. 127). good companion read to Small’s book. Genova
Chapter 6 discusses decision-making, a topic
that Small labels as “one of the hottest areas in
brain sciences” (p. 141). He cites many examples,
noting that cognitive heuristics or shortcuts in
thinking can lead to irrational or wrong decisions.
An interesting example Small includes is the
question posed by other researchers: “‘A bat and
a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1 more
than the ball. How much does the ball cost?’”
Most say with confidence, “10 cents,” but 5 cents
is the correct answer. Another question often used
is “‘How many animals of each kind did Moses
take on the Ark?’” The quick brain says two, but
the brain who doesn’t know the story would think
more slowly and recall or look up the answer,
seeing the protagonist isn’t Moses but Noah.
The final chapter gives a case study of Joan,
a woman with Alzheimer’s disease, and her
daughter, who became distraught when Joan
could no longer remember her name. This story
and the sharing of his experiences around the
9/11/2001 terrorist attack on New York City,
provide a context for discussing the ethics of
memory: the balance between outrage and then a
gradual cooling as normal forgetting or letting go
occurs. Small states, “If memory is required for
caring about others, we should consider the ethical
consequences of too much memory, which might
cause us to care too much” (p. 175). This chapter
brought to mind the behaviors observed during
the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol building
in Washington, DC. Did those involved care too
much with no time to reflect on their behaviors?
As noted by reviewers cited on its jacket, the
book is “fascinating and useful” and “will calm the
fears of anyone who has mislaid a pair of glasses
or couldn’t remember the name of an acquaintance
and worried they were suffering from incipient
memory loss.” In reviewing the book, Bobrow (np,
2021) wrote she wished it had more case studies
and less “competing metaphors” and “repetitive
prose” that indicate this is Small’s first book.
Remember: The Science of Memory and
the Art of Forgetting by Lisa Genova
This new work by Lisa Genova (2021) is a
holds a doctorate in neuroscience from Harvard
and is known for sharing information related to
Alzheimer’s disease and memory via TED talks
(Genova, 2017) and appearances on popular
television shows. Also, she is known for her
five novels, especially one about a woman with
early-onset Alzheimer’s—Still Alice (Genova,
2007)—that became an award-winning movie.
Remember, her first nonfiction book, was written
to reduce the stress that many people feel when
they have moments of forgetting. She has said that
she wanted the book to be a gentle, conversational,
and user-friendly manual to let everyone know
that “forgetting is human” (Pearson, 2021).
Kortava (2021) called the book “a poignant study
of how we forget most things in life” (np).
The book is divided into three sections,
each with several short chapters. The first
Collegial Exchange · 19