The Black Swan - Busy book review

A Black Swan is a highly improbable event with three main characteristics: it's unpredictable; it carries a massive impact; & after the fact, we concoct an explanation that makes it appear less random & more predictable than it was.

In this month's best selling book, Nasim Taleb introduces us to his interpretation of some of life's 'Black Swans'. Elegant, startling & universal in its applications, The Black Swan is a concept that will change the way you look at the world.

According to Taleb, Black Swans underlie almost everything, from the rise of religions, to events in our own personal lives. The astonishing success of Google was a black swan; so was 9/11.

Why do we always ignore the phenomenon of Black Swans until after they occur? In this revelatory book, Taleb explains everything we know about what we don't know & shows us how to face the world.

Busy Girls Review:

"The Black Swan" forces you think in new ways and makes you realise that seeming anomalies in life highlight the importance of random events. Taleb successfully makes a rational presentation of his ideas though at times it does get somewhat scholarly for the average reader. Still he has a way of incorporating humour into his writing style. Quite random, but a great psycological read" H Bishop, Cheshire.

'An idiosyncratically brilliant new book' Niall Ferguson, Sunday Telegraph

The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable
by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, from only £.99 from Waterstones, Amazon & WHSmith.