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Summary: A new way to think about fads, trends and problems
Review: Gladwell has laid out well reasoned arguments on what makes things "tip". From hush puppy shoes to teen smoking, his description of the spread of ideas and the people inportant in their spead will give you reasons the rethink the way we look at the world. You don't have to agree with his conclusions to have new ways of looking at why some things change and others don't.
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Summary: Read the New Yorker article instead
Review: Superfically intriguing ideas, better and more concisely (and concretely) expressed in Gladwell's original New Yorker article -- as well as in (heaven forfend) the decade-old academic articles upon which Gladwell's book is based. The book feels stretched, like an article press-ganged into a book by a large advance. As for the ideas themselves ... well, let's just say that pop sociology is like Japanese food -- good fun, but leaves you hungry for something more substantial shortly thereafter. Put another way, connectors and the rest are interesting ideas, but to the extent that they are empirically demonstrable, these are old ideas; and to the extent that some of the things Gladwell talks about are new, they are largely untestable.
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Summary: Important book from a wannabee maven-connector!
Review: This is an important book that gracefully synthesizes interesting ideas from a number of fields including epidemiology, marketing, sociology and marketing. It is written in beautiful prose that is very easy to absorb and not a little sticky....
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Summary: I've tipped!!!
Review: Some books are just viral in nature. This is one of them. "Winning at Mergers & Acquisitions", "Einstein's Dreams" and "Naked Lunch" are just a few others that have it all.The message is so strong, the delivery is so smooth, the content so easily digested, that it compells the reader to act. To pass on the message. To build it into his or her life. To become an evangelist for the cause. "The Tipping Point" has all those components.
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Summary: Some Interesting Ideas
Review: Malcolm Gladwell has attempted to define the things which whole marketing departments and advertising firms struggle daily to grasp. What makes idea catch on? What does it take to make a product catch on? Is it the product itself? Or maybe just what that product represents. He shares anecdotes on a variety of different topics, from the popularity of teenage cigarette smoking to Blue's Clues; from the popularity of "that great new restaurant in town" to the phenomenon of contagious teenage suicide. Gladwell's anecdotes are interesting and thought provoking, however I warn anyone who is looking for a Marketing Bible. Gladwell analyzes the successes of some innovative companies and marketing campaigns. However if it's just the facts and not some opinions you're looking for, look someplace else. Gladwell frequently refers to his pseudo-science: surveys he himself has conducted of people he knows. It takes more than a survey of a handful of the author's friends and acquaintances to sell me on an idea - and therefore I must say that I haven't been completely sold on Gladwell's theories. That is not saying that this book is without merits. Gladwell makes many good points on the transmission of ideas. I found this book extremely interesting and useful in that it provides a new look at some age-old problems. And any book which can make me think differently on an idea which I was fairly certain about - teenage smoking, for example, is a worthwhile read in my book.
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Summary: Almost one of the best...
Review: This is a great book with lots of information about how social epidemics are spread. If you are in a field where reputation matters and word of mouth can make all the difference, you need to read this book. I was a bit put off by the over long discussion on Seasame Street and Blues Clues, it was almost as if the author was trying to stretch things out to make the book longer. This is the only complaint I have on this book and what keeps it from getting five stars. The section on the "Law of the Few" is probably the best and offers the best insight, although the "Power of Context" chapters are solid too. There are a number of other exercised included that will lead to ahas, wows and a few chuckles too. A great read for marketing types and those interested in how fads/trends spread. If you like Harvey Mackay, Harry Beckwith and/or Pat Williams, you will most likely like Gladwell too.
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Summary: Fascinating book with an optimistic message
Review: I found this book very interesting to read. It very practically shows how big changes in societies often happen unexpectedly and suddenly and can be caused by small events. The explanation is: if circumstances are right, ideas, behavior and products can, with the help of the right kinds of people, spread throughout a society like an epidemic. When that happens, a critical point, the tipping point, can be reached at which the behavior and features of the system itself suddenly change. This principle is clearly illustrated by stories about the sudden decrease in crime in New York in the nineties, by the sudden popularity of Hush Puppies and by several other interesting stories. This book contains many interesting ideas and facts, some of them very counter-intuitive. The author manages to make accessible some implications of chaos theory in a very easy and entertaining way for a large public. What I also like about this book is the optimistic tone and message: change is possible and it can happen non-linearly, which means that small events can lead to major changes. Fascinating book.
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Summary: Needs more variety of examples.
Review: A quick, easy & interesting read, but the author should have included a wider range of examples.
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Summary: Good book
Review: This book was a great inspiration, but it started rambling in some places.
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Summary: Awesome book!
Review: He makes complex ideas simple using analogy and lots of examples to hit his points home. Thought provoking, and full of information, this is a perfect book for anyone interested in what makes people tick. Its a mix between sociology and marketing.
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