I'm not a huge nonfiction reader and I really never have been, but this book was an exception. It's a great book with a really important message, and every chapter brings a new story to the reader that explains in a bright and brilliant way how success doesn't occur in a vacuum. One story tells of the Canadian hockey league and the fascinating statistic that the vast majority of all successful hockey players are born in January, February or March. Why? Because the cutoff date for signing children is January 1, and those born in the first three months have a distinct advantage in age, experience and size in relation to those they play against. That same cutoff date is used by other countries, such as the Czech Republic, for not only hockey but soccer as well, which means that children born in the later part of the year consistently are overlooked when it comes to team sports. It's just one of the built-in biases around us that play a role in determining the success or failure of an individual. This book is significant, thought-provoking, and easy to read. If you enjoy the content or writing style of this book, I'd also recommend Gladwell's podcast, Revisionist History.Publisher's description:
In this stunning 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.