Customer Rating: 

I loved this book - the combination of summarised research and interviews with the eponymous outliers made it an accessible read. I'll remember the discussions that it triggered with friends and family fondly.

The overall feel of the book is positive; Outliers puts the great successes that we all aspire to in context and shows that being the best you can be in your place and time is an achievement in itself.

Customer Rating: 

A fascinating read that results in making the resolution to not make assumptions and be more thoughtful about why things are the way they are. Very accessibly written, I amazed myself by zooming through it in a couple of days - never expected that!

Customer Rating: 

This is a remarkably easy read. I am not a quick reader but I had finished this in double-quick time.
The author's examples to support his thesis that however outstanding a person might turn out to be there is always someone or some circustance that has made the success possible.
Where was my fairy godmother when I needed her most?

Customer Rating: 

This is the third Gladwell book that I have read. I started with "The Tipping Point" which was stimulating and for me quite insightful. I followed that expectantly with "blink" - this never seemed to get anywhere and has left me with little recollection of what it was all about. So I had hopes for better things with "Outliers" - the subject matter sounded interesting "Stories of Success" (whilst choosing to overlook some less than glowing reviews here.

I have had the luxury of some quiet reading time this morning and completed the reading journey. The route was interesting: descriptions of all sorts of individual successes with careful analysis of possible cause and effect. I moved towards the concluding chapter with anticipation of it all coming together - it didn't, instead I got the Gladwell family history and was left stranded wondering what I had learned which I could somehow translate into new insight into the world around me, perhaps some clues as to how to make use of the examples to change my behaviour, help others perhaps even myself.

I've rated the book "OK" because there is interesting historical and cultural insight and analysis, but I'm left hugely disappointed at the absence of meaningful (or perhaps applicable) conclusion.

Customer Rating: 

Excellent review of what makes a successful person. A very compelling read once started. The simple message underlying the story of success and should be relayed on to all individuals.