SuperFreakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

Book Club Discussion Questions available!

Release date: 2009 / 216 pages

Synopsis (from jacket cover): Four years in the making, SuperFreakonomics asks not only the tough questions, but the unexpected ones: What’s more dangerous, driving drunk or walking drunk? Why is chemotherapy prescribed so often if it’s so ineffective? Can a sex change boost your salary?

First line: “The time has come to admit that in our first book, we lied. Twice.”

Before I get to my review, I can’t resist a quick attention getter… 

The best thing a person can do to cut greenhouse emissions is 

• drive a hybrid
• eat one less hamburger a week
• become a locavore (eating locally-grown food)

Any guesses?  Here’s my hint:  the answer will not cost you a penny! 

Review:  Two years ago I came late to the phenomenon known as Freakonomics.  I had heard quite a bit about the book, but wasn’t sure that economics was really my cup of tea.  Honestly, I was only truly aware of macroeconomics — inflation, recession, financial trends — and figured a whole book of this sort of thing would not be to my liking.

Well, I was wrong. I devoured Freakonomics in one quick sitting (on vacation no less — it was great “poolside” reading) – and quickly realized that Levitt and Dubner are microeconomists — “seeking to understand the choices that individuals make, not just in terms of what they buy but also how often they wash their hands and whether they become terrorists.”  Microeconomists seek to discover why cable television has greatly improved the lives of women in rural India yet endangered countless lives in the U.S., regardless of gender.  They discover that standard seat belts are just as effective as car seats in preventing fatalities in children aged two or older.  And probably chuckle a bit to discover the Department of Homeland Security helped marijuana become one of California’s greatest crops in this decade.  And there not afraid to publicize even unpopular findings, like how volcanic explosions can assist in decreasing (or even halting) the greenhouse effect.

So, when the publisher asked if I would like to read SuperFreakonomics, I jumped at the chance and was fascinated, amused, unsettled, and thoroughly entertained.  Yes, entertained.  As with the first one, this book is so incredibly readable and interesting — and funny (what do you call the impact pimps have on the culture of prostitution?  Pimpact!).  I found the findings to be surprisingly reassuring, too.  Despite subjects like prostitution, terrorism and apathy, after reading this I felt calmer and more optimistic about the human race than I have for a quite a while. 

This is in large part because I love the behaviorist approach economists take toward why we do what we do.  They do not “assume the best” of people — nor do they assume the worst.  Simply put,

People aren’t “good” or “bad.” People are people, and they respond to incentives. They can nearly always be manipulated – for good or ill – if only you find the right levers… [we] act as we do because, given the choices and incentives at play in a particular circumstance, it seems most productive to act that way

This may sound too scientific, even a little cold, but in a country where fear and anger seem to out-shout rationality too often, I found the findings in this book — even those that I might wish weren’t true — somehow calming.  I like to know why things happen and to believe that even the most bizarre behavior has a reason, we just need to figure out what that reason is.  I know the next step — altering that behavior — may be nearly impossible, but at least there can be a gameplan developed to try.

I also love to hear facts like the following:

The probability that an average American will die in a given year from a terrorist attack is roughly 1 in 5 million; he is 575 times more likely to commit suicide.

On average, 4 people die of shark attacks per year while 200 people are killed by elephants.

I love “reality-checks” and reminders that the media often has a vested (monetary) interest in breeding fear and hysteria.  I need to remember that the truth is out there, if we know where to look. So, this is a great book for fellow worry warts.

This is also an especially good book for book clubs!  Surprised?  Well, my book club discussion questions for Gladwell’s Outliers have been my best-sellers this year — and I believe SuperFreakonomics would be as good, if not better, at starting conversation since the authors tackle controversial topics such as terrorism and global warming.  Even if your club usually embraces fiction, I encourage you to take a break and experience a rolling, rolicking good “quarrel” about elements in society that affect every single one of us.  Well worth your time!

For another perspective…  Check out the New Yorker’s review!

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