Why thinking in pictures? Short answer: because the words seem to need help. If you sample the many big ideas books to hit the shelves recently, they all promise a smarter, more rational you. But if the books are that good, why are there so many?

Using illustrations and photographs, Michael Blastland shows how pictures can help put ideas to the test, making them vivid, showing them in action. Part guide, part gallery, Thinking in Pictures is a brilliant introduction to smart-thinking - how to use it and when to question it - for anyone trying to make sense of a puzzling world.