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Rating: 
Summary: Strong Case for More Than Critical Thinking
Review: After reading a number of books on critical thinking, this book came along at the right time. The author shows the importance of the kind of thinking that generates new ideas. And, while these new ideas are subject to critical thinking, it takes a very different kind of thinking to create them.I was disappointed with the relative lack of tools to use in what the author refers to as "lateral thinking." While the tools were not the subject of this book, I believe the author could have included a number of the tools he uses and teaches. (I felt as if the author chose to omit the tools just so that readers would need to buy one of his other books to get that information.) A worthwhile read.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't waste time here
Review: For the most part, this book seemed contrived and impractical. There are a few good ideas in here, but they are buried. It takes a lot of effort to sort through and pull them out. I have three main beefs with the book: 1) The author refers to himself and his works WAY too often. There is definitely more than Narcism there, I think maybe he is his own hero. But I don't find lateral thinking to be that fascinating. He satkes his reputation on this concept. "Lateral Thinking" is the same thing as "mechanized creativity." 2) There is a fundamental flaw in the book that shoots itself down. The entire book is about how we should avoid absolutes and deal with perceptions instead of concrete facts. Then it proceeds to claim that the author was "right" about this and that in previous works and it makes assumptions like that more food production is a goal to aspire to. Ultimately, this is a good "exploration" of a subject the author has not applied to himself. As such, I don't feel he should be regarded as speaking with authority. 3) It is about 200 pages too long. There are 3 redundant forwards, followed by a lengthy introduction (32 pages), followed by a redundant introductory section. On page 110, the author is still referring to things he intends to do with the book. Don't talk it up, just do it. There are more than 70 pages building up what the book will do, and the rest of the book just fails to live up. ONE of the THREE Forwards says that the book is in simple terms because De Bono is a master and can dumb it down. Not so. It is in simple terms because it is not a complete concept and the whole book is filled with testaments to the author's lack of understanding of his own concepts. All that said, I actually do enjoy the "lateral thinking" exercises of De Bono. I suggest spending your reading time there instead of here.
Rating:
Summary: Too much analysis of the problems and minimal solutions
Review: I agree with Daniel Crew of Nashville. This book has a few gem in it but it takes too much effort to dig them out. Dont get me wrong, I think highly of De Bono's thinking tools but this book failed to deliver against the expectations he never stop building up through out the entire book. AND he came across as a really insecure person because he constantly need to give himself credit for ideas he has already established as 'his' - which is irritating. He did a pretty good job of explaining why the current system of thinking is archaic but he failed to explain in a simple and clear manner the solution that he is proposing - that is because he only made references to them - you wont find them in the book, you need to go out and buy more of his books to learn about those methodologies.
So, this book ended up sounding like a really long brochure on why you need to use his thinking tools and methodology. Save yourself the time and money. Just go out and buy Six Thinking Hats and the other books. He does a pretty good job in explaininig why the tools work and why you need them there again.
Rating:
Summary: Too much analysis of the problems and minimal solutions
Review: I agree with Daniel Crew of Nashville. This book has a few gem in it but it takes too much effort to dig them out. Dont get me wrong, I think highly of De Bono's thinking tools but this book failed to deliver against the expectations he never stop building up through out the entire book. AND he came across as a really insecure person because he constantly need to give himself credit for ideas he has already established as 'his' - which is irritating. He did a pretty good job of explaining why the current system of thinking is archaic but he failed to explain in a simple and clear manner the solution that he is proposing - that is because he only made references to them - you wont find them in the book, you need to go out and buy more of his books to learn about those methodologies.
So, this book ended up sounding like a really long brochure on why you need to use his thinking tools and methodology. Save yourself the time and money. Just go out and buy Six Thinking Hats and the other books. He does a pretty good job in explaininig why the tools work and why you need them there again.
Rating: 
Summary: A concise explanation of a complex subject.
Review: I found this book to be extremely useful to my understanding of human behavior. I have been reading extensive psychological literature in order to formulate a useful model to understand how humans in organizations react to proposed change. I want to use that model to help them create positive change. Most of the literature on organizational change is anecdotal support of an approach that once worked somewhere. (Exception: Chris Argyris) DeBono starts with the fundamental mechanism of how the brain works to understand the behavior people exhibit. This understanding has enabled me to formulate much more effective approaches to individual and organizaitonal change. You do have to think hard to understand deBono's underlying messages. It may be difficult if this is the first deBono book you read, or if you have not been digging for a solution to a specific problem. But, I give it a 5+!
Rating:
Summary: This book changed my life
Review: I was introduced to this book as a part of a required reading course. I use its precepts probably every day in some form or another. I have read other books by the same author, but none of them 'spoke to me' the way this one did. I re-read it every few years and always get something fresh from it. People have commented that this is just an infomercial, but I think that disregards the fact that all of De Bono's work must be taken together to appreciate his concepts.
Rating:
Summary: Learn How To Think, And Then Do It
Review: If you're interested in learning what the brain does without having to memorize lists of neurotransmitters and sections of neo-cortex, this is the book for you. De Bono is a genius at making a complex subject completely accessible to the average reader. For example, he avoids involved anatomical terminology altogether by using the metaphor of an octopus in place of a neuron. Learning how the brain works by imagining a beach full of glowing, smelly octopuses is a more efficient mnemonic device than a dry, "scientific" treatment. The rest of the book addresses the problems we humans have in trying to deal with everything "logically" without real logical tools, and thinking that everything can be "solved" through language, analysis, and confrontation. My way of thinking was enriched by De Bono's introduction of paradox, humor, and intuition to provoke creative thinking. And he takes on more than a few of philosophy's sacred cows while he's at it. The idea of "catchment" as a model of our automatic compartmentalization of new data is alone worth the price of the book.
Rating: 
Summary: This book seemed like an "info-mercial" for his other books
Review: Perhaps I have read too many book dealing with similar topics but I found this book "underwhelming". This book lacks substance; focusing more on pseudo-academic referencing and plugs for the author's other books, workshops, and CDs. Perhaps if he were truly blazing new ground this might be acceptable. Unfortunately much of the information is "old hat" if you have read the far superior "How real is real?" by Paul Warzlawick, "Quantum Consciousness" by Stephen Wholinsky, or even the works of Robert Anton Wilson (Fiction or Non-Fiction). That said, the best part of the book, in my opinion, was his explorations and anecdotes about humor. In the end, unless you are a nut for this subject or looking for a second tier reference I would try other books. I freely admit that I have not read Edward De Bono's other works and would still consider reading them after a good browsing to make sure they do not resemble this book. Sorry Edward; nice concept but poor execution.
Rating:
Summary: A concise explanation of a complex subject.
Review: This book stands out as one of the best explanations of how the mind works, and doesn't work, and how to make make the best use of your own. He destroys in a few paragraphs a lot of deeply entrenched misconceptions that western society has been operating under for centuries. I've seen a lot of other long and wordy attempts that fail to get half as far as De Bono has in this little book. It's densely packed with concepts, each touched on just long enough to give the reader the main points, without all the flowery self-indulgent nonsense that so many other writers of books for the lay person love to fill their pages with. De Bono gets to the point. And good points they are! Excellent book.
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