|
Outliers: The Story of Success | 
 enlarge | Author: Malcolm Gladwell
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Category: Book
List Price: $27.99
Buy New: $14.95
You Save: $13.04 (47%)
New (46) Used (11) Collectible (4) from $14.95
Rating:  63 reviews
Sales Rank: 7
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 320
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.5 x 1.2
ISBN: 0316017922
Dewey Decimal Number: 302
EAN: 9780316017923
ASIN: 0316017922
Publication Date: November 18, 2008 (New: Last 30 Days)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW - EXCEPTIONAL VALUE - EXCELLENT BUY
| |
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
Amazon Best of the Month, November 2008: Now that he's gotten us talking about the viral life of ideas and the power of gut reactions, Malcolm Gladwell poses a more provocative question in Outliers: why do some people succeed, living remarkably productive and impactful lives, while so many more never reach their potential? Challenging our cherished belief of the "self-made man," he makes the democratic assertion that superstars don't arise out of nowhere, propelled by genius and talent: "they are invariably the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extraordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard and make sense of the world in ways others cannot." Examining the lives of outliers from Mozart to Bill Gates, he builds a convincing case for how successful people rise on a tide of advantages, "some deserved, some not, some earned, some just plain lucky."
Outliers can be enjoyed for its bits of trivia, like why most pro hockey players were born in January, how many hours of practice it takes to master a skill, why the descendents of Jewish immigrant garment workers became the most powerful lawyers in New York, how a pilots' culture impacts their crash record, how a centuries-old culture of rice farming helps Asian kids master math. But there's more to it than that. Throughout all of these examples--and in more that delve into the social benefits of lighter skin color, and the reasons for school achievement gaps--Gladwell invites conversations about the complex ways privilege manifests in our culture. He leaves us pondering the gifts of our own history, and how the world could benefit if more of our kids were granted the opportunities to fulfill their remarkable potential. --Mari Malcolm
Product Description
In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers"--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band.
Brilliant and entertaining, OUTLIERS is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 58 more reviews...
 Another terrific book from Gladwell December 3, 2008
Joseph Oppenheim (San Diego, CA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
"Outliers", like other Gladwell books, is very enjoyable. It offers some interesting perspectives about what makes some people more successful than others, with particular emphasis on those who far exceed expectations. Many of the book's criticisms focus on what the book is not. I think that is a misstake. This is simply a fine book, a very thoughtful and easy read. The book goes into how one's ethnic roots and specific opportunities set the stage for dramatic success, then working hard takes over. For example:
1. An ancestral emphasis on community involvement can lead to health results which beat the odds.
2. The date of one's birth can affect athletic and academic success, as the oldest in a group of youth, will lead to the 'Matthew Effect', better coaching/teaching, more games/practice, etc. There is an accumulative advantage. On a list of the wealthiest people of all-time, besides opportunity showing up with so many from America, among that group, being born around 1835 and around 1955 stand out, to take advantage of when railroads and Wall Street emerged and when computer time-sharing emerged, respectively.
3. The 10,000 hour rule. Gladwell thinks about 10,000 hours of concentrating at a skill is necessary to excel at something.
4. Whether it is height in basketball or IQ, just being tall enough or intelligent enough is all that really matters, same with colleges as long as they are good enough. Practical intelligence, knowledge and savvy are what really counts and family background is the key to having those. Parents should be involved with their children, with lots of negotiating and expectations of child talk-back, necessary to cause a child to develop a sense of entitlement, maybe not the most moral approach, but extreme success madates that.
5. Jewish immigrants had advantage of occupational skills, like in the garment industry - enterpreneurial skills versus other immigrants like peasant farmers. Work was more meaningful. Their offspring saw this, plus NYC public schools were probably the best in the world at the time.
6. Harlan, Kentucky is an example of herdsmen settlers, with a culture of honor from Scotch-Irish ancestors, influenced descendants, Gladwell saying that crime in the South more influenced more by personal than economic reasons. Certain 'insult' words have bigger effect.
7. Plane crashes are more from human errors in teamwork and communication. Cultural respect for authority a big factor; can keep a subordinate from directing a superior in an emergency. Plus, 'mitigated speech' can be a problem. Can be remedied by training in 'Aviation English'.
8. Asians being better in Math, likely related to ancestral tradition of rice paddies, which are complicated and require hard work throughout the year. Western farming is more mechanical with usually an off-season with little work. Here again, more meaningful and hard work. Plus, Asians learn to count faster because of language differences for numbers.
9. K.I.P.P. Academy in the Bronx, charter middle school, is successful because it has long school days and short summer vacations, with students who commit to work hard. Studies have shown schools generally do well when they are in session, the problem are kids losing ground without good parental involvement during summer vacation. So, it is possible to make up for poor childhood family situations. Makes school meaningful. Incentives, rewards, fun and discipline is the formula.
A terrific book.
 OUTLIERS OUTLINE December 3, 2008
Gian Fiero (Hollywood, California)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I'm a big Malcolm Gladwell fan. I think his research and writing skills are sublime; however, in Outliers, a book about about men and women who do things that are out of the ordinary, he gets carried away.
While his objective was to have Outliers do for our understanding of success, what Stewart Wolf did for our understanding of health (closely examining personal choices or actions in isolation by looking beyond the individual), he delves far too deep in his supporting content to make a point (e.g. The Three Lessons Of Joe Flom and especially The Ethinic Theory of Plane Crashes).
Unlike The Tipping Point, one has to sift through Outliers to find the extractable and relevant content that can be applied to your life. This is not say that it isn't there; Malcolm Gladwell always delivers in that regard, but in this book the delivery is slow in comparison to his previous works.
Some of the book highlights include information on divergence and convergence tests; backgrounds of Bill Joy and Bill Gates; Lewis Terman's Termites; Annette Lareau's concerted cultivation and intensive scheduling; Robert Sternberg's practical intelligence; accumulated advantages; and the 10,000 hour rule. These topics alone make this book worth having, but you could probably conduct independent research on your own via Google to get in-depth information on these people and subjects.
The message of Outliers - in the words of Malcolm Gladwell - is that people don't rise from nothing. It makes a difference where and when we grew up. The cultures we belong to, the legacies we were passed down by our forebears shape the patterns of our achievement in ways that we can not imagine. No one - not rock stars, not professional athletes, not software billionaires, and not even geniuses - ever makes it alone.
Ironically, that's why I purchased Outliers; I wanted my favorite researcher to expand upon the ingredients of success in ways that I could not imagine. In the end, his thought expansion (as sprawling as they may be) are enlightening and inspiring - but not as much as they can be coming from Malcolm Gladwell.
fun to read-couldn't put it down December 3, 2008
bookloverFLA (Naples, FL)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I paid retail for this book, something I do only once every couple of years and got my money's worth. I am passing it to several people to read.
I cannot say any more than other people have said here on amazon.
it's thoughtful, provocative and enjoyable.
Negative reviewer "Nathan" had excellent points but I'm glad I didn't read him before buying and miss a good book, however I will read some of the books he says are better. (I got Drunkards Walk from the library and didn't finish it though).
Gladwell has a gift for writing and his personal story of how his grandmother got her education makes me want to donate money to educational charities.
A Great and Interesting Book December 3, 2008
Henok Negash (San Diego, CA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Not very often do you get to read a book that is informative and very interesting all at the same time. Malcolm Gladwell has done this in Outliers. This book is not for this who want a meta-analysis or any other scientific method to reveal how success is really attained. This book is for the casual reader and by reading this book you can't help but to analyze yourself and wonder, "How did I get to where I am?"
I've read some of the other critiques of this book who believe that Gladwell's statement aren't validated by science. This book's purpose wasn't to say that attaining success is only done by good forture; rather, the purpose of the book is to refute that myth that one's success is achieved alone. Gladwell has proved that success isn't a solitary achievement.
Gladwell is underrated December 2, 2008
C. D Strother (Potomac, MD United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I just finished Outliers. I have read other books, Tipping Point and Blink. No doubt that he has been wildly successful, and I think some critics have felt that the public should be warned off that what he says is not necessarily fully supported or correct. Actually, I think the writing is so good, that critics are concerned that members of the public will be unduly influenced by that alone. I understand the criticisms of Gladwell for being glib, under-researched/anecdotal, unoriginal, obvious, cursory, conclusory. Also, he does tend to wander from his basic premises into other areas that have little to do with them. Many probably do take what he says too uncritically.
Nevertheless, I think he is actually underrated. Sure is he often pulling together some rather common and obvious points, but could many say that others would have extracted as much from this information as he does, or could present it convincingly? Very thought-provoking stuff, extremely well-written. I would not swallow any of this stuff whole, but I think there is a tremendous amount of truth set out by Gladwell that is not generally recognized. Also, I think that Gladwell deserves no small credit for writing about advantages and disadvantages of various human cultures--and I think there are invariably both in every culture--that I am sure other authors are afraid to come near. Perhaps his African background helps here. Anyway, I think this is very intelligent, provocative, and informative writing. One does not have to agree with him to get a lot of of it. I think we are fortunate to have him, and for his writing to be as popular as it is.
|
|
|
SEO and Marketing TipsBETA RELEASE | |
