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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
Part of the problem here, I realize, is that I was hoping this would be a different book. I wanted a catalogue of classic confidence games, for two reasons: 1. Future writing research. 2. I wanted a final, definitive answer on whether the “biggest Ella Fitzgerald ever” from Ocean’s 11 is a real game. I did not get what I was hoping for.
But even discounting that: this is a stodgy and depressing read. The writing is fine, but the story portions are, for obvious reasons, both sad and repetitive. Person trusts someone, person gets taken in, disaster befalls person. There are only so many times I want to read that story, and this book exceeded my limit by chapter 3. And the science portions are not what I want from science writing.
Overall, I’m not sorry I read it, but I’m not glad, either. (Oh, and if you’re wondering why we fall for it every time, I’ll save you some glum reading. We fall for it because a) we’re human and b) con men are very good at exploiting human strengths and weaknesses for gain. That’s it! That’s the book.)
But even discounting that: this is a stodgy and depressing read. The writing is fine, but the story portions are, for obvious reasons, both sad and repetitive. Person trusts someone, person gets taken in, disaster befalls person. There are only so many times I want to read that story, and this book exceeded my limit by chapter 3. And the science portions are not what I want from science writing.
Overall, I’m not sorry I read it, but I’m not glad, either. (Oh, and if you’re wondering why we fall for it every time, I’ll save you some glum reading. We fall for it because a) we’re human and b) con men are very good at exploiting human strengths and weaknesses for gain. That’s it! That’s the book.)
Loved this book. I definitely came out of it thinking "Ha ha ha, well now that I know about confidence games, I would never actually fall for one," which is exactly what the author says that all of us believe about ourselves -- and that's why we fall for them.
informative
reflective
medium-paced