Book Reviews
The Expanding Blaze: How the American Revolution Ignited the World, 1775-1848 Jonathan Israel Princeton University Press (2017) A briliant examination of “the crucible of demographic modernity” As is often true of my reviewing efforts, I read this book in combination…
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The Success Equation: Untangling Skill and Luck in Business, Sports, and Investing Michael J. Mauboussin Harvard Business Review Press (2012) How and why to “untangle” skill and luck to improve at “the art of good guesswork” when making decisions Note:…
Read MoreSmartcuts: The Breakthrough Power of Lateral Thinking Shane Snow HarperBusiness (September 2014) “Sacred cows make the best burgers.” Robert Kriegel As I began to read Smartcuts, I was again reminded of the fact that many (if not most) human limits…
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The Age of the Democratic Revolution: A Political History of Europe and America, 1760-1800 R.R. Palmer Princeton University Press (2014) A brilliant synthesis of immensely complicated historical issues In his highly informative Foreword, David Armitage quotes Franco Venturi ‘s opinion…
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Igniting the American Revolution Derek W. Beck Source Books (May 2016) Those were indeed the times that “tried men’s souls” I was reminded of that observation by Thomas Paine, as well as another: “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered;…
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Kochland: The Secret History of Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America Christopher Leonard Simon & Schuster (August 2019) One of Charles Koch’s greatest skills: “analyzing and mitigating risk” in order to achieve long-term success Until reading this book, I…
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The 10 Stories Great Leaders Tell Paul Smith Sourcebooks (August 2019) How almost anyone can communicate with high impact every time Albert Einstein once suggested that if you cannot explain your “great idea” to a six-year-old, you really don’t understand…
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Nincompoopery: Why Customers Hate You — and How to Fix It John R. Brandt HarperBusiness Leadership (July 2019) How to understand, design, and deliver great value for everyone involved For such a colloquial word, nincompoop actually has a very learned…
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Super Thinking: The Big Book of Mental Models Gabriel Weinberg and Lauren McCann Portfolio/Penguin (June 1919) How to develop a mind that can jump jurisdictional boundaries to create unique value J. H. Flavell was probably the first to use the…
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Digital Transformation: Survive and Thrive in an Era of Mass Extinction Thomas M. Siebel Rosetta Books (July 2019) Creative disruption and natural selection in the 21st century Years ago, Charles Darwin observed: “It is not the most intellectual of the…
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