Book Review: What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell, 2009, Back Bay Books.

Cover of What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures

I distinctly remember the first book by Malcolm Gladwell. I hadn’t the slightest clue what to expect and as it turns out, I couldn’t have guessed. The next three books have made me a devoted reader of his works. What The Dog Saw doesn’t disappoint. It brings the usual mix of his human interest stories each with it’s own unique moral that challenges the way we solve problems individually and in the society.

He begins the book with a section on the varieties of what he calls minor genius and what makes certain people so good at what they do and why they consistently top their fields. He brings out odd reasons why they shine and helps us find their mistakes and how we can improve on such as in John Rock’s Error or imbibe their methods such as in Blowing Up.

The next session is on Theories, Predictions and Diagnoses. Here, Gladwell brings out the methods we generally use for solving our human problems and the assumptions that we inevitably make like the assumption that the more information we have, the more equipped we are to solve a problem. He also discusses some of our societal problems and arrives at the (now logical yet) startling conclusion that the solutions to these problems are not as easy and straightforward or even as moral as we like to assume. Let me state here that my personal favourite has to be Million Dollar Murray simply because the conclusion is so shocking.

Finally, he moves on to a section titled Personality, Character and Intelligence. This is my favourite section because he discusses the issues and myths we have about talents and intelligence and how they have shaped our world today in a way that least benefits us. If you’re sometimes slow on the uptake, like me, you’d perhaps take some comfort in some of the theories he puts forth.

In all, this is a good read and certainly worth it’s time. I’ll even give it a second over.

Related articles

• What the Dog Saw and other adventures. Malcolm Gladwell. (regnordman.com)
• What the Dog Saw: Malcolm Gladwell Book Review (condofire.com)
• The Malcolm Gladwell Innovation Hypothesis Applied to Multi-Stage Evolution of Disease Management (diseasemanagementcareblog.blogspot.com)

Book Review: Blink: The power of thinking without thinking by Malcolm Gladwell, 2005, 2005 Paperback Edition.

Image via Wikipedia

We live in a world that assumes that the quality of a decision is directly related to the time and effort that went into making it…

The first task of blink is to convince you of a simple fact: decisions made very quickly can be every bit as good as decisions made cautiously and deliberately.

-          Malcolm Gladwell, Author of Blink and The Tipping Point.

We make snap judgements everyday. From simple things such as deciding what foods to eat to complex things such as deciding whether we like people or not at first glance. Many times, we can’t explain why we decide the way we do and any attempt to do so ends in frustration and utter failure.

Welcome to Blink.

In this insightful, simple yet beautifully written book, Malcolm Gladwell explores the inner workings of the mind that enable us to make spur-of-the-moment decisions. He goes beyond explaining the process to the conditions that can make this process faulty. Highly recommended reading.

Book Review: The Tipping Point: How little things can make a big difference by Malcolm Gladwell, 2000, First Back Bay International Edition.

Image by Bill McIntyre via Flickr

We are all, at heart, gradualists. Our expectations are set by the steady passage of time. But the world of the tipping point is a place where the unexpected becomes expected, where radical change is more than a possibility. It is, contrary to our expectations, a certainty.

-          Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point.

In this paperback volume, Malcolm Gladwell has extensively explored the concept of trends. Why do some behaviours and products catch on and assume epidemic proportions while some die off never seeing the light of day? The answer to this is more complex than may be initially thought.  A thoroughly researched volume, heavily backed by various scientific studies, the author points out several factors  which are largely responsible for social behaviours and life choices that people make.

There is so much to be said for the explanation of human behaviours found that it makes one think. Hailed as a terrifically rewarding read, it is truly a pleasure to read.

Related Articles

• Malcolm Gladwell is the Key to The Game [Ladies] (gawker.com)
• Malcolm Gladwell Really Wants You to Know About His Cousin [Books] (gawker.com)
• Malcolm Gladwell to Address Real Estate Community on June 24 (observer.com)
• Gladwell vs Pinker (stat.columbia.edu)
• What is the LEEDigation Tipping Point? (greenbuildinglawupdate.com)