A review by jay_the_hippie
What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures by Malcolm Gladwell

4.0

I so enjoy how Malcolm Gladwell clarifies words and thoughts that are kinda fuzzily related in my head (until I see what he says and suddenly realize how important the nuances the separate the two really are). For instance, if you are panicking in a stressful situation, the best thing to do is the exact opposite of what you should do if you are choking in that same situation. I like how he explores the mistakes that communities and people are doing, such as banning pit bulls, or profiling terrorists. His discussion of how people act differently in different settings (and there is often little correlation between the two) matches well with my experience (two people who knew me from different situations. schoolmate: "You mean, Jay, the quiet shy guy who never says much?" Outside of school: "No, Jay, very loud and outgoing. Always talking."), but I do think he has missed one nuance of that analysis, and that is that the people you are with are more important than the actual setting. He may be thinking that when he says "setting," but usually he spells out everything in a clear manner, so that there is nearly no vagueness hiding in any dark corner or skulking under the bed.

If you are familiar with his longer works, this one is nice because it's like getting a whole new dozen or more books by him, only somewhat more condensed.

I will continue to read everything he writes.