What the Dog Saw

What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures is the fourth book released by author Malcolm Gladwell, on October 20, 2009. The book is a compilation of the journalist's articles published in The New Yorker.[1]

What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures
Paperback edition
AuthorMalcolm Gladwell
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreNon-fiction
PublisherLittle, Brown and Company
Publication date
October 20, 2009
Media typeHardback, e-book, audiobook
Pages432 pp.
ISBN978-0316075848
Preceded byOutliers, 2008 
Followed byDavid and Goliath, 2013 

Background

Gladwell initially covered business and science in The Washington Post before joining the staff at The New Yorker in 1997.[2] Each of the articles first appeared in The New Yorker and was handpicked by Gladwell. The stories share a common theme, namely that Gladwell tries to show us the world through the eyes of others, even if that other happens to be a dog, hence the title.[1]

Synopsis

What the Dog Saw is a compilation of 19 articles by Malcolm Gladwell that were originally published in The New Yorker which are categorized into three parts. The first part, Obsessives, Pioneers, and other varieties of Minor Genius, describes people who are very good at what they do, but are not necessarily well-known. Part two, Theories, Predictions, and Diagnoses, describes the problems of prediction. This section covers problems such as intelligence failure, and the fall of Enron. The third section, Personality, Character, and Intelligence, discusses a wide variety of psychological and sociological topics ranging from the difference between early and late bloomers[3] to criminal profiling.[4]

Reception

What the Dog Saw was met with mainly positive reviews. It received profiles in many high-profile publications, including the New York Times, The Guardian, Time Magazine, The Los Angeles Times and The Independent.[1][5][6][7][8] In particular, Gladwell was praised for his writing and storytelling, and reviewers looked upon the essay format positively, with The Guardian stating "one virtue of What the Dog Saw is that the pieces are perfectly crafted: they achieve their purpose more effectively when they aren't stretched out."[5] What The Dog Saw was criticized for its use of statistics and its lack of technical grounding.[1]

What the Dog Saw debuted at #3 on the New York Times Bestseller List.[9] It spent three weeks in the top 3 and a total of 16 weeks on the chart, appearing concurrently with Gladwell's previous book Outliers.[10][11] It was also an Amazon Top 25 seller for the month of November.[12] What the Dog Saw was named to Bloomberg's top 50 business books of 2009.[13]

References
  1. Pinker, Steven (2009-11-07). "Book Review - 'What the Dog Saw - And Other Adventures,' by Malcolm Gladwell". New York Times.
  2. Millar, Anna. What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures - Malcolm Gladwell Interview The List. April 29, 2010.
  3. Malcolm Gladwell (October 20, 2008). "Late Bloomers. Why do we equate genius with precocity?". The New Yorker. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  4. Maslin, Janet (2009-10-19). "Changing the Subject, Maintaining the Tone". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-11-09.
  5. Sample, Ian Gladwell's great strength is his ability to make his readers think The Guardian. October 17, 2009.
  6. Altman, Alex Q&A: Author Malcolm Gladwell Time Magazine. October 20, 2009.
  7. The New Yorker writer's sense of curiosity burns bright in this collection of essays Los Angeles Times. November 22, 2009.
  8. A 'New Yorker' stalwart incounterintuitive mood The Independent. November 1, 2009.
  9. New York Times Bestseller List 11-08-2009
  10. New York Times Bestseller List 01-07-2010
  11. New York Times Bestseller List 11-08-2009
  12. Bestsellers in Books for November 2009 Amazon.com.
  13. Pressley, James Top 50 Business Books, Animal Spirits to What the Dog Saw Bloomberg. Jun 17, 2010.

All of the articles in What the Dog Saw can be read for free on Gladwell's website.

Part 1: Obsessives, Pioneers, and other varieties of Minor Genius

Part 2: Theories, Predictions, and Diagnoses

Part 3: Personality, Character, and Intelligence

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