kmf54321's review against another edition
3.0
A stepping stone to a field of study that can be further investigated.
sxrxhtonin_'s review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
agrajag's review
5.0
An important book about the many problems in society that get worse when inequality widens. Systematically compares 25 developed countries; and the 50 US states in a long range of indicators ranging from health to crime to teenage pregnancies and show that inequality systematically makes all of these problems worse.
I found the last few chapters, where they talk about possible strategies for reducing inequality weak; there are MUCH better treatments of this topic elsewhere; when this book nevertheless deserves 5 stars, it's because the first dozen 75% of the book that deal with demonstrating that inequality in fact IS a problem worthy of solving is outstanding.
I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who cares about fairness, justice, social problems or who are already convinced that rising inequality is a bad thing, but want to learn more in order to be able to be more effective campaigning to turn this worrying trend around.
I found the last few chapters, where they talk about possible strategies for reducing inequality weak; there are MUCH better treatments of this topic elsewhere; when this book nevertheless deserves 5 stars, it's because the first dozen 75% of the book that deal with demonstrating that inequality in fact IS a problem worthy of solving is outstanding.
I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who cares about fairness, justice, social problems or who are already convinced that rising inequality is a bad thing, but want to learn more in order to be able to be more effective campaigning to turn this worrying trend around.
bub_9's review against another edition
4.0
I think the authors' argument is well-argued and genuinely insightful. It's well-written and, for books about this subject-matter, refreshingly down-to-earth and pragmatic.
I do think that it occasionally presents too much data without interrogating it sufficiently (e.g. what proves that causality between inequality and mobility is one way and not the other?), and I do take issue with several of the data points presented in Chapter 4 - why don't they take the chance to establish any correlation (or lack thereof) between income and contribution to foreign aid?
But anyway, people should read this.
I do think that it occasionally presents too much data without interrogating it sufficiently (e.g. what proves that causality between inequality and mobility is one way and not the other?), and I do take issue with several of the data points presented in Chapter 4 - why don't they take the chance to establish any correlation (or lack thereof) between income and contribution to foreign aid?
But anyway, people should read this.
jpamilih's review
5.0
The book was both enjoyable and academically engaging - I'm sure everyone who reads it will be convinced that inequality is one of the most prescient movements of our time.
amyisabookworm's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
ojaypm's review
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
This is a good, and important, book. Providing the statistical evidence (and arguments supporting the interpretation of the data) is a really powerful tool to support what many people intuitively ‘know’ - that equality ends up being better for everyone.
I did feel my reading pace slow down towards the end where the book becomes more overtly political and aspirational as the comprehensiveness of the vision made me struggle with the reality of implementing it, but I’ve concluded it’s important to have an overarching vision to anchor and describe the individual findings and data.
I did feel my reading pace slow down towards the end where the book becomes more overtly political and aspirational as the comprehensiveness of the vision made me struggle with the reality of implementing it, but I’ve concluded it’s important to have an overarching vision to anchor and describe the individual findings and data.
johnclough's review
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.25
A thesis that seems more relevant than ever, put forward convincingly and with passion.
The authors' tone occasionally slips into being more assertive than the evidence supports. The presentation of the evidence was intended to seem comprehensive but in fact at times felt a little oversimplistic and repetitive. It would have benefited from being a little more dynamic.
The conclusion also fell short of tangible proposals - the authors seem convinced that political willpower was all it would take, and the policies would look after themselves. The section on climate change felt a little gratuitous and shoe-horned in to show they were thinking about wider issues.
The authors' tone occasionally slips into being more assertive than the evidence supports. The presentation of the evidence was intended to seem comprehensive but in fact at times felt a little oversimplistic and repetitive. It would have benefited from being a little more dynamic.
The conclusion also fell short of tangible proposals - the authors seem convinced that political willpower was all it would take, and the policies would look after themselves. The section on climate change felt a little gratuitous and shoe-horned in to show they were thinking about wider issues.
natpalit's review
2.0
The premise of the book was what drew me in. However its not a unique concept, and though I've not seen or read them, I'm sure there must be better books written on the topic.
The book is divided into three main parts. The first gets very repetitive very quickly, with similar graphs and correlations repeated over and over to make the same point. Moreover, I felt as though some of the correlations drawn were not strong enough to back up the claims being made by the book. The latter two sections of the book are better, but still underdeveloped. The author's really don't interrogate the question they have set themselves as rigorously as a they ought to for topic like this.
The book is divided into three main parts. The first gets very repetitive very quickly, with similar graphs and correlations repeated over and over to make the same point. Moreover, I felt as though some of the correlations drawn were not strong enough to back up the claims being made by the book. The latter two sections of the book are better, but still underdeveloped. The author's really don't interrogate the question they have set themselves as rigorously as a they ought to for topic like this.