Outliers

Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell has been on my to-read list for awhile, and I got it on audiobook from Libby. The book description reads, "In this stunning new book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of 'outliers'--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band."

This was a really interesting book. I don't know if the book description above really captures the book, but to me, it was about how super successful people who are "outliers" in terms of their success are more than just a self-made person or rags to riches story. Instead, they were extraordinarily lucky or had a life filled with circumstances that put them in the the position to have the success they did. I found his examples super interesting and fun to follow. (Like the fact that an incredibly significant number of professional hockey players are born in January.) Great read and one I'd recommend to others. I'm rating it 2/3 stars since it wasn't one I 100% loved as much as some books I've read, but I still really, really liked it.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)