What the Dog Saw：And Other Adventures

Whatisthedifferencebetweenchokingandpanicking?Whyaretheredozensofvarietiesofmustard-butonlyonevarietyofketchup?Whatdofootballplayersteachusabouthowtohireteachers?Whatdoeshairdyetellusaboutthehistoryofthe20thcentury?Inthepastdecade,MalcolmGladwellhaswrittenthreebooksthathaveradicallychangedhowweunderstandourworldandourselves:"TheTippingPoint";"Blink";and"Outliers."Now,in"WhattheDogSaw,"hebringstogether,forthefirsttime,thebestofhiswritingfrom"The""NewYorker"overthesameperiod.Hereisthebittersweettaleoftheinventorofthebirthcontrolpill,andthedazzlinginventionsofthepastasaucepioneerHowardMoscowitz.GladwellsitswithRonPopeil,thekingoftheAmericankitchen,ashesellsrotisserieovens,anddivinesthesecretsofCesarMillan,the"dogwhisperer"whocancalmsavageanimalswiththetouchofhishand.Heexploresintelligencetestsandethnicprofilingand"hindsightbias"andwhyitwasthateveryoneinSiliconValleyoncetrippedoverthemselvestohirethesamecollegegraduate."Goodwriting,"Gladwellsaysinhispreface,"doesnotsucceedorfailonthestrengthofitsabilitytopersuade.Itsucceedsorfailsonthestrengthofitsabilitytoengageyou,tomakeyouthink,togiveyouaglimpseintosomeoneelse'shead.""WhattheDogSaw"isyetanotherexampleofthebuoyantspiritandunflaggingcuriositythathavemadeMalcolmGladwellourmostbrilliantinvestigatorofthehiddenextraordinary.