Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
Book Review: Informative and Enligtening, but a Bit Superficial
Summary: 4 Stars
"Freakonomics" is both informative and enlightening, but in some respects it is superficial, barely scratching the surface of inordinately complex subjects. I suppose this was by design, in order to appeal to a broader audience (and sell more books). By way of illustration, I offer a couple of examples.
First, when discussing the impact of campaign donations and expenditures on the outcome of elections, the authors make the following statement: "Chances are you'll give the money in one of two situations: a close race, in which you think the money will influence the outcome; or a campaign in which one candidate is a sure winner and you would like to bask in reflected glory or receive some future in-kind consideration." (pp. 10-11) In reality, there is a third situation that may prompt you to make a donation: The race is too close to call so you decide to give to both candidates in order to preserve your ability to curry favor with whomever happens to win. (If you don't think this really happens, then you have been living on another planet for the past 30 years.) This is a minor point and is not terribly relevant to the argument the authors were making about campaign finance, but it is illustrative of the authors' tendency to over-simplify certain behaviors and scenarios.
Another more disturbing example can be found in the authors' discussion of two separate issues: the declining crime rate and effective parenting. On the subject of crime, the authors' unequivocally state: "Growing up in a single-parent home roughly doubles a child's propensity to commit crime." (pp. 138-139). But on the subject of families, parenting and education, they aver: "But whether a child's family is intact doesn't seem to matter. Just as the earlier-cited studies show that family structure has little impact on a child's personality, it does not seem to affect his academic abilities either. * * * [This should] offer encouragement to the roughly twenty million American schoolchildren being raised by a single parent." (p. 168) Does this mean that a single parent, whose child (according to the authors) is twice as likely to a commit a crime, can take solace in the fact that his or her incarcerated off-spring did just as well in school as the other kids? More to the point, is it really true that kids who have a 100% greater chance of becoming guests of the penal system do just as well in school as those who come from families with two parents in the home? Perhaps all of this can be reconciled and explained; the authors, however, make no attempt to do so.
The foregoing quibbles notwithstanding, I still recommend this book. It will make you think and challenge some of your beliefs and preconceived notions about human behavior and our society.
Book Review: good
Summary: 5 Stars
The book is excellent. It really encourages an analytical approach to problem solving while encouraging creativity of thought. This is a rare combination. Likely to be of value to anyone who has to adopt an analytical approach in their work.
Book Review: Easy to Understand
Summary: 5 Stars
What separates this book from so many of its ilk is its ease of use. I'm a dunce when it comes to these matters, but this book spells things out so that I finish it and have a stronger and better understanding of all of the concepts within. Well done, Mr. Leavitt!Book Review: Numbers, analysis, Freakonomics
Summary: 5 Stars
I like it when someone is creative enough to look at what may seem like disjointed information, do an analysis based on various methodologies, and make conclusions based on the resulting information. Levitt makes an attempt to do this in several areas. I thought the book was interesting in its approach and and usage of microeconomics to describe various situations. I just read another book called The System by Roy Valentine that has somethat of a similar approach in defining a methodology/process to pick up girls. Both books are very well done, interesting, and a must buy for anyone looking for a good and interesting read.Book Review: Insightful and entertaining
Summary: 4 Stars
Steven Levitt has a remarkable gift for using the tools of traditional economics to illuminate completely un-traditional problems. While some of the topics covered in FREAKONOMICS are loosely connected to business (the chapter on crack gangs is especially interesting in this regard), the real delight of this book is the light it sheds on issues that many of us have perhaps thought about but never considered rigorously: What effect does a kid's name have on his or her future? Do teachers graded on how well they prepare kids to take tests cheat? What accounts for the precipitous decline in crime in the U.S. in the 1990s? Levitt's answers are not always perfect or completely provable, but they are always intriguing.
The book is not perfect: the prose is sometimes too glib, and the authors occasionally embark on digressions that aren't really all that compelling. Nor should you expect a coherent through-line to the book: the only real connection between the various subjects is that Levitt worked on them. But in the end this doesn't really take away from the pleasure of reading the book. It's enormously enjoyable, as well as being provocative. If you like counterintuitive thinking like Malcolm Gladwell's THE TIPPING POINT or James Surowiecki's THE WISDOM OF CROWDS, you're pretty much guaranteed to love this.