James Nestor
James Nestor has published 4 books. The recommended reading order starts with Get High Now (2009).
James Nestor is an American author and journalist who writes narrative nonfiction about science, health, and the natural world. His work has appeared in Outside Magazine, The Atlantic, National Public Radio, The New York Times, and Scientific American, among others.
His second book, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, arrived in 2020 and became a phenomenon. The book examines how humans have lost the ability to breathe properly over hundreds of thousands of years and now suffer from snoring, sleep apnea, asthma, and autoimmune disease as a result. Nestor traveled the world to understand what went wrong and how to fix it, finding answers not in pulmonology labs but in ancient burial sites, secret Soviet facilities, New Jersey choir schools, and the smoggy streets of São Paulo. Drawing on thousands of years of medical texts and recent studies in pulmonology, psychology, biochemistry, and human physiology, the book sold more than two million copies, was translated into more than 35 languages, and won the American Society of Journalists and Authors award for Best General Nonfiction Book of 2020.
Nestor's first narrative nonfiction book, DEEP: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What The Ocean Tells Us about Ourselves, was published in 2014 and named a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice and an Amazon Best Science Book of the year. He lives in San Francisco.
Shelf & Shadows
Order of Non-Fiction Books
- Tagsnon-fictionfantasyDescriptionJames Nestor, the bestselling author who taught us to breathe properly, now turns his investigative lens to the most accessible altered states we can achieve without substances—through nothing more than our own bodies and minds. This is a hands-on manual for transformation, a collection of techniques drawn from ancient practices and cutting-edge science that promise to shift consciousness, reduce pain, boost creativity, and unlock dormant human potential. Nestor doesn't theorize from a distance; he's tested each method himself, from hyperventilation protocols that mimic psychedelic experiences to sound frequencies that induce trance states, from breath-holding that triggers euphoria to postural techniques that alter perception. What emerges is a practical guide to the body's own pharmacy, a toolkit for anyone curious about expanding awareness without external chemicals. Written with the same clarity and curiosity that made his previous work essential reading, this book challenges our assumptions about what's possible within the boundaries of our own physiology. Nestor's approach is equal parts journalist and guinea pig, demystifying practices that have been gatekept by gurus or dismissed by skeptics, and presenting them as birthright capacities waiting to be reclaimed. For readers seeking peak states, pain relief, or simply a deeper relationship with their own nervous system, this is an invitation to explore the extraordinary hidden in the ordinary.Publication dateSeptember 9, 2009Amazon rating4.2/5Print length267LanguageEnglishPublisherChronicle Books
- DescriptionJames Nestor descends into the ocean on a single breath, no tank, no regulator, just his body and the pressure of the deep. What begins as curiosity about competitive freediving becomes an investigation into the outer limits of human physiology and the strange, transformative relationship between our species and the sea. The central question is deceptively simple: what happens to the human body when it plunges hundreds of feet below the surface? The answer rewrites assumptions about our terrestrial nature. Nestor follows freedivers who black out at depth, scientists studying the "master switch" that turns humans into something closer to marine mammals, and researchers uncovering evidence that we carry evolutionary adaptations to the ocean encoded in our very cells. This is science writing that moves at the pace of a descent—measured, deliberate, then suddenly vertiginous. Nestor embeds himself in a subculture of athletes pushing past what should be survivable, while weaving in findings from marine biology, neuroscience, and evolutionary theory. The ocean becomes both laboratory and mirror. What emerges is less a book about extreme sport than an inquiry into human potential and our forgotten aquatic past. Nestor writes with the precision of a journalist and the wonder of someone who has touched the bottom and returned changed. The deep, it turns out, has much to say about the surface.Publication dateJune 30, 2014Amazon rating4.7/5Print length266LanguageEnglishPublisherHoughton Mifflin Harcourt
- Tagsnon-fictionDescriptionWhat happens when a writer known for deep dives into the science of breath and the ocean turns his attention to the nature of storytelling itself? James Nestor, whose investigative rigor has taken readers into freediving depths and the hidden mechanics of respiration, now examines fiction not as escape but as a fundamental human technology. The title promises inquiry, and Nestor delivers: a measured exploration of why we construct narratives, how they shape perception, and what role invented worlds play in understanding the actual one. This is nonfiction in service of a larger question—why do we need stories at all? Nestor approaches fiction the way he approaches his other subjects: with curiosity tempered by skepticism, a journalist's eye for detail, and a willingness to follow the thread wherever it leads. He moves between neuroscience, anthropology, and literary history, building a case for fiction as more than entertainment—as a cognitive tool, a survival mechanism, a way of rehearsing reality. The prose is clean and deliberate, never overwrought. Readers familiar with his previous work will recognize the method: start with a question, gather evidence, resist easy answers. Here, the subject is more abstract, but the investigation remains grounded. It's a book that asks you to reconsider what you thought you knew about why stories matter.Publication dateMay 12, 2015Print length118LanguageEnglishPublisherTate Publishing
- Tagsnon-fictionDescriptionWe've been breathing wrong for centuries, and it's killing us slowly. James Nestor embarked on a strange journey into the science of breath after a chance encounter at a breathing class left him skeptical but curious. What he discovered upends everything we think we know about this most basic human function. Through ancient practices, cutting-edge pulmonary research, and his own harrowing self-experiments—including deliberately breathing incorrectly for weeks to document the damage—Nestor reveals how modern humans have lost the art of proper breathing, and how that loss affects everything from our sleep to our immune systems to the very shape of our faces. The stakes are higher than you'd imagine. Mouth breathing, shallow chest breathing, overbreathing—these aren't just bad habits but pathways to chronic illness, anxiety, and physical degeneration. Yet the solutions are startlingly simple, drawn from freedivers who can hold their breath for ten minutes, Tibetan monks, Victorian health reformers, and Indigenous cultures who understood what Western medicine is only now rediscovering. This is investigative journalism that reads like adventure, equal parts science primer and wake-up call. Nestor makes the invisible visible, showing us that the key to better health isn't exotic or expensive—it's already inside us, waiting to be remembered. You'll never take another breath the same way again.Publication dateMay 26, 2020Amazon rating4.7/5Print length304LanguageEnglishPublisherRiverhead Books
Frequently Asked Questions about James Nestor
James Nestor's non-fiction books can be read in any order. The publication dates are Get High Now (2009), Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us about Ourselves (2014), The Role of Fiction (2015), and Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art (2020). Each book explores different subjects, so readers can choose based on their immediate interests.
A good starting point for James Nestor is Breath: The New Science of Lost Art (2020). This book, which examines the science and practice of breathing, received widespread attention and is often the introduction readers have to his work. Its exploration of a fundamental human behavior makes it broadly accessible.
No, James Nestor's books do not need to be read in a specific order. His non-fiction works cover distinct topics, from personal exploration in Get High Now to the science of breath in his most recent book. Readers can select any title that aligns with their curiosity without needing prior knowledge from his other books.
James Nestor writes standalone non-fiction books. He does not write novels or series. Each of his published works explores a specific subject in depth, offering a complete exploration within a single volume. Readers will find distinct topics addressed in each of his books.
James Nestor has written four non-fiction books. These include Get High Now (2009), Deep: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us about Ourselves (2014), The Role of Fiction (2015), and Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art (2020).
The first book James Nestor wrote was Get High Now, published in 2009. This early work predates his more widely known books on topics like freediving and breath science. It offers an earlier look at his approach to exploring specific human experiences and practices.
James Nestor's most recent book is Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, published in 2020. This work delves into the impact of breathing on human health and performance, drawing on scientific research and historical practices. It has become his most recognized publication.
James Nestor writes non-fiction books. His subjects range from personal development and altered states of consciousness to the science of freediving and the physiological impact of breathing. His work often involves deep research into specific human behaviors and their underlying science.
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We verified the reading order for James Nestor's books by cross-referencing official publication dates, ISBN databases, and publisher catalogs.
Last verified: March 2026
Shelf & Shadows. (…). “James Nestor Books in Order.” Retrieved …, from https://www.shelfandshadows.com/authors/james-nestor