160,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock πŸ‡³πŸ‡Ώ 

Happy Sunday! Auckland Store open until 5pm today πŸ“š

How to Use a Fork

Stories of Mending the Broken Brain
Brief Description
An incredible voyage of discovery . . . intensely moving and awe-inspiring - Marina Hyde Sensational. A moving, thoughtful and truly fascinating read - Abi Morgan, author of This is Not a Pity Memoir In How to Use a Fork, the beautiful science of brain plasticity... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3199
Elsewhere:
$3900
OVERNIGHT NZ-WIDE DELIVERY

Found a better price? Request a price match

Fusing cutting-edge neuroscience with extraordinary human stories, this is compelling popular science about what happens when the brain breaks and how – incredibly – it is able to heal.

Fusing cutting-edge neuroscience with extraordinary human stories, this is compelling popular science about what happens when the brain breaks and how - incredibly - it is able to heal.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

An incredible voyage of discovery . . . intensely moving and awe-inspiring - Marina Hyde

Sensational. A moving, thoughtful and truly fascinating read - Abi Morgan, author of This is Not a Pity Memoir

In How to Use a Fork, the beautiful science of brain plasticity meets remarkable human stories of survival and recovery. We meet the woman who thought her arm was a baby, the man who saw mannequins peering at him through the dark, and the patient who found his way back to human interaction through music.

As a medical student, Orlando Swayne was taught that a broken brain doesn't mend. But as a junior doctor, he began to meet patients for whom this was clearly not the case. Intrigued by what he saw, he delved deep into the emerging neuroscience of brain reorganisation, and discovered that over time brain tissue creates new networks and regenerates.

Developments in neurology continue to reveal new capabilities that allow functions we thought to be lost to be restored. The key to recovery, a return to some semblance of our previous selves after brain injury, lies in neurorehabilitation: painstaking work that rebuilds shattered lives.

Irresistible to anyone who is curious about the mysteries of the brain, How to Use a Fork is a fascinating journey into the outer reaches of human experience.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781035064359

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 June 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Picador

Audience: General / adult, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Width: 153.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 320

About the Author

Orlando Swayne is a consultant neurologist who works primarily in the neurorehabilitation of acquired brain injury, including stroke, but who also has a wide general neurology practice. He is a consultant neurologist at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN), where he leads the Neurorehabilitation Unit, and is a member of the Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation at the UCL Institute of Neurology. He also works at Northwick Park Hospital and the Wellington Hospital. He has published widely on the control of movement by the brain and the role of brain plasticity in recovery following stroke. How to Use a Fork is his first book.

More from Health & Wellness

View all
  • On Sale
    15% off
    Dad, I Want to Hear Your Story (Expanded Edition)
    Honour his legacy with the greatest gift of allβ€”his story. The Official Hear Your Story Collection Your dad's story is more than just memoriesβ€”it's a journey filled with wisdom, experiences, and defining moments that shaped his life. Dad, I Want to Hear Your Story is a guided journal that gives him the chance to share those stories in his own...
    Paperback
    $1700
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Atomic Habits
    Atomic Habits by James Clear is a transformative guide that demonstrates how tiny, incremental changes in behaviour can fundamentally reshape your life. Rather than urging sweeping transformations, Clear advocates for the compound effect of hundreds of small decisions. Whether it’s performing two push-ups a day, waking up five minutes earlier, or making a brief, focused phone call, these minuscule adjustments,...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • New Release
    Quicksilver
    Do not touch the sword. Do not turn the key. Do not open the gate. Twenty-four-year-old Saeris Fane is good at keeping secrets. No one knows about the strange powers she possesses, or the fact that she has been picking pockets and stealing from the Undying Queen's reservoirs for as long as she can remember. But a secret is like...
    Paperback
    $2399
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Calamity Club
    The Calamity Club is Kathryn Stockett's first novel since the global bestselling phenomenon The Help. This sweeping story follows a group of underestimated women and an 11-year-old orphan girl whose fates converge in Mississippi in 1933. Oxford, Mississippi, 1933. Eleven-year-old Meg Lefleur has learned the hard way to rely on no one. Ever since her beloved mother failed to come...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3800
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Crescent City Paperback Box Set
    A beautiful box set containing all three paperback instalments of the Crescent City series from #1 bestselling global phenomenon Sarah J. Maas. BOUND BY BLOOD. TEMPTED BY DESIRE. UNLEASHED BY DESTINY. Maas has established herself as a fantasy fiction titan - Time Think Game of Thrones meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a drizzle of E.L. James – Telegraph Spiced...
    Set
    $5499
    Elsewhere:
    $7000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Hormone Health is Mental Health
    New Release
    Hormone Health is Mental Health
    Hormone Health is Mental Health is a lifechanging guide to understanding perimenopause and midlife women's mental health - and how understanding your hormones is the first step to feeling like yourself again. This book is for women in their thirties, forties, and fifties who feel like they're falling apart. Women who feel like their brains and bodies are betraying them,...
    Paperback
    $3299
    Elsewhere:
    $4000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • How Lucky Am I
    The first full book featuring social media sensation Mr. Skelly, with over 5 million global followers, a skeleton who teaches us that life is a gift to be treasured, reminding us how lucky we all are to live in this present moment. For readers of The Book of Gifts and The Little Frog’s Guide to Self Care. In this poignant,...
    Hardback
    $4299
    Elsewhere:
    $5500
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Age Code
    What if the food you eat could rewind your biological clock? 'Clear and compelling' β€” Chris van Tulleken 'Really interesting and insightful' β€” Joe Wicks 'Fascinating' β€” Tim Spector From the rising incidence of cancer in the under-50s to increased infertility rates, there are signs everywhere that growing numbers of us are ageing too quickly. Why? Many believe there’s one...
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • This is ADHD
    An essential guide to understanding Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder - commonly known as ADHD - for people with ADHD and their families, friends and workmates. Chanelle Moriah was officially diagnosed with ADHD at 22, and soon discovered just how inaccessible a lot of information can be for ADHD adults and those who may not yet have been able to...
    Hardback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $3299
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    16% off
    The Happiness Trap
    Free yourself from depression, anxiety, and insecurity, and instead, build a rich and meaningful life with the world's best-selling guide to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Over 1 million copies sold! The Happiness Trap by Dr. Russ Harris is an illuminating and transformative guide designed to help readers navigate the challenging landscape of modern life. As an expert in ACT,...
    Paperback
    $2700
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Surviving White Island
    Surviving White Island - Surviving the unsurvivable. Healing from the unhealable. This is an inspiring memoir of physical and mental recovery, from someone who lived through the Whakaari White Island volcanic eruption. "I heard someone say, 'Wow!' And someone else exclaimed, 'Look at that!' I had my back to the crater. I turned around. The moment I saw it, I...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    (6)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse
    The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy is a profound exploration of life’s universal lessons, delicately illustrated and rich with narrative depth. This heartfelt story introduces readers to four unlikely friends: a curious boy, a tiny yet thoughtful mole, a wary fox, and a wise horse. Together, they find themselves traversing challenging and sometimes treacherous...
    Hardback
    $4000
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    (3)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 160,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.