book review vol. seven

I've known for a while that I enjoy learning, but until recently I thought I only enjoyed learning about certain things, things that I found pertinent to my life and the lives of those for whom I care. Then I read Freakonomics and realized that my limited set of information that I strive to know more about may not be so limited.

I'm sure you probably wouldn't roll into a bookstore and pick out a book that looked like the one pictured above. Well I did and after reading the intro and the first chapter (a pre-purchase routine I regularly rehearse), I knew I wanted every ounce of information this book had to offer. It was like reading a textbook, only good. I've never read a book like this before, and when I'm in charge of this nation's education programs, I'm going to require teachers to teach out of books like this. Kids would undoubtedly enjoy school more. No question in my mind. Why is that? Let me tell you.

The authors of this book have a gift. They know how to present potentially boring data in a very exciting way. For example, their blog is interesting, where as mine, for the most part, isn't. This discrepancy in interesting-ness can be accounted for in two areas: One, they're freakishly smart; Two, they present information well.

The book is mostly based on the research of Steven Levitt, who is basically like Brad Pitt in economists circles. He's won tons of young economist awards and he's well on his way to winning a Nobel Prize (according to an economics professor I sold shoes to yesterday). During his career as an economist, Levitt has simply asked tons of unconventional questions and found very interesting ties between variables that most people would never notice.

If I had to draw a picture that best represents the book, it would be a sledge hammer crashing down on the words, "Conventional Wisdom." If that doesn't get you excited, I don't know what will. Levitt explores things like why parents don't feel safe when their kids play at a house whose owners keep a gun, while they fail to think twice about having their kids play at a house with a swimming pool, which is in fact, statistically, significantly more dangerous. Stuff like that is interesting, no?

So there you have it. Go buy Freakonomics (or borrow the Supercinski's). Read it. Have intelligent discussions with your peers (This book will give you no shortage of things to discuss). Read the Levitt's work so you can claim you knew him before he was famous (i.e. before he wins a Nobel Prize). And also listen to Andrew Peterson's Christmas album like I asked you so kindly to do in yesterday's post. If for some reason you can only do one, listen to the music. It's more powerful than the book, unless you were somehow able to read the whole book in 45 minutes, and even then I think the music trumps.