The brain's ability to navigate takes center stage in this sharp survey from molecular biologist Kemp (The Lost Species). As he writes, "Navigation is one of the most cognitively complex tasks our brains perform." Kemp explores this complexity from a range of perspectives: he takes readers inside research labs where scientists probe the way neurons connect with other neurons to create mental maps and images; investigates how the Tsimane people navigate dense Bolivian rainforest; demonstrates how desert ants find their way around the Sahara Desert; and digs into neurobiology research, including the 1984 discovery of head-direction cells, which function as an inner compass. Along the way, Kemp debunks numerous myths, including the idea that females possess poorer navigational skills than males, and reflects on the difference between the navigational abilities of modern humans versus those of Neanderthals. What separates the two, he suggests, is the use of the subjunctive form, which led to humans being better at navigating. Kemp peppers in accounts of his own poor navigational abilities and colorful stories of people getting lost, which keep things moving along. The result is both enjoyable and accessible. (Jan.)

How do we know where we are? Molecular biologist Kemp interviews numerous neuroscientists to identify the mechanisms of orientation, spatial skills, and human navigation and discusses important regions of the brain and the neural pathways involved in how we traverse our environment. The hippocampus has a starring role in both memory and navigation, while the caudate nucleus functions as "the brain's autopilot." Specialized place cells, head-direction cells, and grid cells facilitate our sense of where we are and where to go. Tantalizing subject matter sprouts up throughout: the internal compass, the reaction of brain waves to the Earth's magnetic field, dead-reckoning (navigating environments without landmarks, like deserts), the impact of solitary confinement on spatial abilities, people with topographical disorientation who become adrift amidst familiar surroundings, death by GPS (the potential peril of over-reliance on GPS directions). Kemp also shares brief, strange, and sometimes sad stories of people who get lost. Finding our way is a basic necessity of life, yet it is mostly taken for granted. Kemp effectively explains just how complex and astonishing that task really is.

"Navigation is one of the most cognitively complex tasks our brains perform," writes Kemp (molecular biology, Michigan State Univ.; Floating Gold: A Natural (and Unnatural) History of Ambergris). Here the "navigationally challenged" author takes a deep dive into the neurobiology of navigation in an effort to understand his own shortcomings. He frames his exploration with the compelling story of Amanda Eller who became lost in a forest on Maui in 2019; it isn't until the last chapter that readers discover what happened to her. In between, Kemp writes about place cells (a type of neuron that codes for location), grid cells (which code for direction and distance), and head-direction cells (which function like an internal compass). Other topics Kemp explores include the effects of GPS on spatial memory and solitary confinement's devastating impacts on the navigational skills of incarcerated people. In addition to copious notes, the book includes two useful appendices. VERDICT Chock-full of scientific information conveyed by a skilled storyteller, Kemp's book is recommended for readers interested in the neurological differences between those who have an internal compass and those who get hopelessly lost.--Ragan O'Malley

The latest knowledge on how we find our way. Kemp, a molecular biologist specializing in neurodegenerative diseases, admits that he gets lost in his native city. So he admires virtuoso navigators, like his wife, who always know where they are. This short book delivers an expert education in how the brain guides us. As the author shows, it's not a matter of intelligence; plenty of smart people lose their way. The key is memory, largely centralized in the hippocampus, a small structure deep inside the skull atop the brainstem that's literally packed with cells vital to our sense of direction. Licensed London cab drivers, who must memorize every one of the city's 25,000 streets, possess a hippocampus much larger than London bus drivers, who only memorize a single route. The first symptom of Alzheimer's is not memory loss but inability to navigate. "Essentially," writes Kemp, "navigation is…a seamless combination of sensory memory, and short-term and long-term memories spliced together, interpolated and intertwined with one another by the hippocampus and other related brain structures." Early knowledge on the subject arose from studies of rats and mazes, and the Einstein of rat navigation was Edward Tolman. According to Kemp, Tolman's 1948 paper, "Cognitive Maps in Rats and Men," is a work that "should sit alongside other great scientific discoveries of the twentieth century." Tolman's rats did not memorize a series of turns to achieve their goal; rather, they built a cognitive map of the maze, which is not topologically accurate but superb for choosing a precise route. Except for two illustrations, Kemp relies on prose to explain a complex process involving dozens of structures and specialized neurons throughout the brain. Readers with a well-developed hippocampus will have an easier time, but everyone will appreciate the author's stories of how some Indigenous cultures learn their territory (they get lost, too) and concluding sections on how to become a better navigator and how to behave if lost in the wild. An intense lesson in the neuroscience of getting around. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.