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Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell

Outliers

The Story of Success

by Malcolm Gladwell

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Outliers

Malcolm Gladwell’s fascinating new book, Outliers, is a stunning exploration of why some people succeed and others do not. Casting aside any and all preconceived notions, Gladwell’s findings prove constantly surprising, suggesting that the true story of human success is a far cry from what we’ve been led to believe. What do The Beatles and Bill Gates have in common? Why do Asians seem to share an acuity for mathematics? Why does every top New York lawyer appear to have the exact same credentials, according to their résumés? What hidden advantages do star athletes have? Piece by piece, Gladwell composes a theory that encompasses generations, cultures and classes. According to his findings, a great deal of your success involves when and where you were born and who happened to influence you first. Success, he argues, has everything to do with families, birthplaces and even birth dates. Outliers—the few whose achievements fall outside that of the status quo—follow their own set of rules. By pinpointing the characteristics they share, Gladwell delineates a provocative list of guidelines to follow in order to make the most of human potential.

Softcover: 304 pages

Publisher: Hachette Book Group Usa ( November 18, 2008 )

Item #: 88-3247

ISBN: 9781615230822

Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.25 x 0.76 inches

Product Weight: 9.0 ounces

Very intriguing
November 13, 2009

As a scientist myself, I take observations reported as research with a pinch of salt as did a previous reviewer (David H). However, behavioral research relies on cohort and case controlled designs as experiments are hard to come by. Gladwell puts forth a good argument with observations that are provocative. Enough for some to sit back and say "Hmmm" and others to go the other way. That is exactly the point! Outlier (or not?)

Reviewer: Shreekant

I LOVED The Outliers
November 07, 2009

I found it one of the most fascinating books I've read this year (and I read widely). Gladwell has an original turn of mind that sees patterns and takes disparate information, brings it together to explain human occurrences that seem random. I've already bought and given away several copies of this book.

Reviewer: Linda B

Following in the path of
October 28, 2009

... "Outliers" is very good. Reinforces the idea that the right place, the right time is best for great success; the accidents of language, etc. Malcolm Gladwell does a very good job on minor issues, I think, but misses bigger issues, I'm convinced. Three and a half stars (out of five).

Reviewer: Scott B

Another way to view successes
October 09, 2009

I found this book very interesting. As a teacher, I understand how important opportunity, experience, family support, culture, etc.. have in shaping a life and a future. However, a couple of descriptions in the book seemed a little excessive in explaining how someone life came to be - 5 to 10 events had to happen in order for the person to be who they were. Overall, the book was though provoking, and I would recommend it to others.

Reviewer: Michaela H

Revealing but not how you think...
July 21, 2009

I was intrigued by "The Tipping Point," but the more I have read, listened to and learned about this author, the more I suspected that his reasoning was nothing more than a wildly skillful spin of anecdotal information. This book confirms it. What purports to be reasoning and scientific analysis is merely creative interpretation of anecdote, sprinkled with a very large dose of the author's social theories. There is no brilliance here, it is just delusional interpretation of the world, designed to reassure you that the "special" people of the world are not really that special. The whole thing about birthday placement and being told you are good being all it takes to become a sports star is the most absurd oversimplification I believe I have ever read. He seems to have no sense of the question of relational cause and effect. I could use his logic to prove that a ringing telephone causes earthquakes if I could find and interview people who's telephones rang just before the last major earthquakes around the world. "I have talked to these 75 people who's phones rang and then there was an earthquake, so ringing telephones must cause earthquakes." His reasoning is really that absurd. I now think this guy was both an academic and physical underachiever and this book is dedicated to proving the point that there is nothing special about "those guys" who were the best at their sports, etc. Rather pathetic actually. Read the book through this lens and I think you'll end up laughing at the absurdities of his logic. For good mneasure, find the interview he did on the NPR program "Radio Times" in June 2009 and listen to his constantly evolving "logical" interpretatins of things and you'll actually laugh.

Reviewer: David R

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