Rating: 
Summary: Enough biography, not enough philosophy
Review: This book presents a very passable biography of its subjects, Popper and Wittgenstein, but only a cursory overview of their philosophical views. I had hoped for a closer inspection of their respective philosophical positions. This is a shame, too, since the authors write with admirable clarity. The principle disagreement between the two, as covered in this book, was whether there exist real philosophical problems (Popper) or merely linguistic puzzles (Wittgenstein). But what does it mean to claim that, say, the question of free will is a linguistic puzzle? This book brought me no closer to understanding Wittgenstein's position. It's worth reading, but only as an introduction.
Rating: 
Summary: A Highly Entertaining Biography Of Two Philosophical Giants
Review: Wittgenstein's Poker is an elegantly written biographical tale of two of the greatest personalities of 20th century philosophy, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper. The book is likely to especially entertaining for anyone interested in philosophy, intellectual history or biography. Unlike many books written by or about philosophers, this really is a fun and fast-paced read. Moreover, it is accessible to anyone, not just philosophers. I read this book as someone who is only moderately familiar with Wittgenstein and Popper and their contributions to philosophy. No previous knowledge of either man is necessary to enjoy this book and learn from it. For anyone looking for a critical analysis of the philosophical positions of these two intellectual giants, this book may prove to be a bit disappointing. It is more biographical than philosophical in nature. But it is exceptionally rich in detail and offers wonderfully interesting anecdotes about the life and times of these two men. As its title implies, the book takes readers on a whirlwind tour of the lives of these two personalities and culminates in an impassioned debate that occurred for 10 minutes in a cozy room at Cambridge University in 1946. What happened during the debate? What was said? Who won? What do witnesses to the debate say? All of these questions, and many more, are dealt with in an admirably entertaining way by the authors. The paperback version of this book is about 300 pages long. The authors, both award-winning journalists at the BBC, make every page count. No time is wasted and the writing style is crisp and concise, which makes this book a real pleasure to read.
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