You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
Interesting book but the first freakonomics was much better. This book just skipped about through the various topics and didn't really dive into anything. I was expecting more analysis and for it to provide a better understanding of the thinking behind all the conclusions.
I didn't find this to be anywhere near as engaging as the first one.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I liked this book, simply because I always like things that make you really THINK about problems and view them in ways you never have before. However, some of the issues explored in the book were really long and drawn out (the global warming issue in particular) and, I haven't touched Freakonomics in a long time, but it was much shorter than that one, right? I felt like I flew through it. So I still enjoyed the arguments they made, but I liked the first one better, mainly due to the issues addressed in the first book as opposed to this one.
Like its predecessor, this is an extremely fun book to read. The stories are engaging and interesting. I have driven my wife nuts as I have often put down the book and begun to retell what I just read with a "did you know..." Most interesting is chapter two where we learn why suicide bombers should buy life insurance and chapter five which does not so much question the prevailing doctrine of global warming as tear up the way it is (wrongly) presented to the public to get to the heart of the issue.
That being said, this book is not as good as the first one. It seemed to be more random, kind of all-over-the-place. The first chapter on patriotic prostitutes was interesting, but the main point got lost in a lot of tangents. Perhaps that is the best way to say it: this book is filled with a lot of tangents that, though fun to read, do not lend weight to whatever the main point is.
Overall, it is a fun book that reminds us of the basic truth of economics: people respond to incentives. I recommend it, but make sure to read the original first.
That being said, this book is not as good as the first one. It seemed to be more random, kind of all-over-the-place. The first chapter on patriotic prostitutes was interesting, but the main point got lost in a lot of tangents. Perhaps that is the best way to say it: this book is filled with a lot of tangents that, though fun to read, do not lend weight to whatever the main point is.
Overall, it is a fun book that reminds us of the basic truth of economics: people respond to incentives. I recommend it, but make sure to read the original first.
Rating: 3.5
Book warnings: One chapter about the economics of prostitution? (also felt oddly pro it)
Very readable and I enjoyed it but not as much as the first. Maybe it was because I had been surprised by the first whereas I knew roughly what to expect here but also some of the topics just weren't that great. I also wasn't sure what to believe in the climate change chapter. A fun enough one time read.
Book warnings: One chapter about the economics of prostitution? (also felt oddly pro it)
Very readable and I enjoyed it but not as much as the first. Maybe it was because I had been surprised by the first whereas I knew roughly what to expect here but also some of the topics just weren't that great. I also wasn't sure what to believe in the climate change chapter. A fun enough one time read.
I liked Freakonomics. I checked this out from the library in hopes that it would be similar. It wasn't.
Here's what I think went wrong: the authors were more interested in shocking readers than with informing them. Freakonomics felt like the authors had come to sincere conclusions about data that was surprising yet true (or at least they believe it to be so; I know lots of people dispute it). Superfreakonomics felt like the authors dug up very little data and presented it in a way to make the reader think it was surprising. The chapter about climate change was especially horrific, just rehashing the opinions of some people who are probably very smart, but never presenting any data to back up the claims made. Other chapters needed to pick a topic and stick with it instead of bouncing around. I felt as though the authors were constantly reminding the reader how clever they were, but never did anything in this book to prove it. The entire thing reeked of smugness, something I don't remember in Freakonomics (maybe I just missed it).
The authors' first book urged readers to view the world in a different way. I can only assume that Superfreakonomics is also urging readers to become like the authors and see things their way, except this time it has very little to do with reason and objectivity, and everything to do with money.
Here's what I think went wrong: the authors were more interested in shocking readers than with informing them. Freakonomics felt like the authors had come to sincere conclusions about data that was surprising yet true (or at least they believe it to be so; I know lots of people dispute it). Superfreakonomics felt like the authors dug up very little data and presented it in a way to make the reader think it was surprising. The chapter about climate change was especially horrific, just rehashing the opinions of some people who are probably very smart, but never presenting any data to back up the claims made. Other chapters needed to pick a topic and stick with it instead of bouncing around. I felt as though the authors were constantly reminding the reader how clever they were, but never did anything in this book to prove it. The entire thing reeked of smugness, something I don't remember in Freakonomics (maybe I just missed it).
The authors' first book urged readers to view the world in a different way. I can only assume that Superfreakonomics is also urging readers to become like the authors and see things their way, except this time it has very little to do with reason and objectivity, and everything to do with money.
challenging
funny
informative
fast-paced
Eminently readable, but it felt derivative of a lot of other things I've read lately, patricularly Malcolm Gladwell.
