Anyone read any of the Malcolm Gladwell books?

[Pondlife]

if so, would you recommend?

Is it anecdodal pseudoscience amusingly written or something more substantial?

If I enjoyed freakonomics and badscience, should Gladwell be on my kindle/xmas list?

Ta

Pondy

[Spacecadet]

The Malcolm Gladwell Book Generator

Which one though?

[Pondlife]

Ta Spaceman

So I should stick to Dr Morris O'Connor and Dr Julian Cook?

[dang65]

There's been a predictable backlash to his success, but he's a brilliant writer - highly readable and imaginative in the connections he makes using other people's research. Personally, I don't really care if there are holes in his ideas, I just enjoy the curious facts and interesting anecdotes.

I read The Tipping Point, Blink and Outliers and they are all superb. I borrowed his collection of newspaper articles book from the library and didn't have time to read it properly, but what I read was good, though sometimes a bit difficult for a non-American to follow - constant references to cable channels and local manufacturers and so on, which were meaningless to me - but that's a minor problem.

I recommend ignoring the whiners and getting stuck into the entertaining sociology and psychology writing.

[sasguru]

Each book's new ideas could be summarised on one page.
Pop psychology for the not terribly bright and infinitely forgettable.

[DimPrawn]

The Malcolm Gladwell Book Generator

Which one though?

Brilliant!

[Spacecadet]

Each book's new ideas could be summarised on one page.
Pop psychology for the not terribly bright and infinitely forgettable.

Thats how I felt about most of freakonomics and very similar to most TV docs. Lots of content which adds nothing to the point they're trying to make!

[NickFitz]

From ML XXIV: How to write a "Malcolm Gladwell Bestseller" (an MGB)

[dang65]

Each book's new ideas could be summarised on one page.

So give us an example of a book whose new ideas could not be summarised on one page??

Gladwell writes highly entertaining essays, collecting and connecting many diverse ideas. They aren't necessarily 'new' ideas. In fact, seeing as they are other people's ideas they aren't new at all, but they are woven together brilliantly and tangentially, and that's what makes him a genius (as a writer).