David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell

David and Goliath

Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants

Malcolm Gladwell, Little, Brown & Company

Little, Brown and Company · Print & ebook · April 7, 2015

Explore the power of the underdog in Malcolm Gladwell's dazzling examination of success, motivation, and the role of adversity in shaping our lives, from the bestselling author of The Bomber Mafia.

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Who it’s for
A brisk, idea-driven read that rewards discussion and reconsidering who has the edge.
Genres
Applied Psychology, Building Success, Social Psychology
Published
Little, Brown and Company, April 7, 2015

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About this book

Explore the power of the underdog in Malcolm Gladwell's dazzling examination of success, motivation, and the role of adversity in shaping our lives, from the bestselling author of The Bomber Mafia. Three thousand years ago on a battlefield in ancient Palestine, a shepherd boy felled a mighty warrior with nothing more than a stone and a sling, and ever since then the names of David and Goliath have stood for battles between underdogs and giants.

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David's victory was improbable and miraculous. He shouldn't have won. Or should he have? In David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwellchallenges how we think about obstacles and disadvantages, offering a new interpretation of what it means to be discriminated against, or cope with a disability, or lose a parent, or attend a mediocre school, or suffer from any number of other apparent setbacks. Gladwell begins with the real story of what happened between the giant and the shepherd boy those many years ago. From there, David and Goliath examines Northern Ireland's Troubles, the minds of cancer researchers and civil rights leaders, murder and the high costs of revenge, and the dynamics of successful and unsuccessful classrooms—all to demonstrate how much of what is beautiful and important in the world arises from what looks like suffering and adversity. In the tradition of Gladwell's previous bestsellers—The Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers and What the Dog Saw—David and Goliath draws upon history, psychology, and powerful storytelling to reshape the way we think of the world around us.

Power, Reframed

A brisk, idea-driven read that rewards discussion and reconsidering who has the edge.

Come here for

  • conversation-ready ideas
  • cross-genre lens on power and advantage

Expect

  • social theory with historical texture
  • easy entry for book clubs or classroom use

Where it sits

Social Psychology48%
Building Success34%
Applied Psychology30%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Business Motivation
  • Social Psychology
  • Building Success
  • Social Theory
Authors
Malcolm Gladwell, Little, Brown & Company
Publisher
Little, Brown and Company
Published
April 7, 2015
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Business Motivation