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Freakonomics Radio

Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engin...

Episodes 902
Books 633
Everything Is Obvious: *Once You Know the Answer Cover

Duncan J. Watts

Everything Is Obvious

*Once You Know the Answer

It was about common sense and how it fails us, and was mentioned as one of the books Duncan Watts wrote.

"

And more recently, a book called Everything Is Obvious Once You Know the Answer.

— Episode: 70. Eating and Tweeting

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Episode: 70. Eating and Tweeting

It was about common sense and how it fails us, and was mentioned as one of the books Duncan Watts wrote.

"

And more recently, a book called Everything Is Obvious Once You Know the Answer.

Sh*t My Dad Says Cover

Justin Halpern

Sh*t My Dad Says

It was based on Justin's Twitter feed about what his dad says. It became a book and then later a TV show, becoming very successful.

"

My name is Justin Halpern and I created Sh** My Dad Says and I'm author of book by the same name and one of the writers of the television show by the same name.

— Episode: 70. Eating and Tweeting

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Episode: 70. Eating and Tweeting

It was based on Justin's Twitter feed about what his dad says. It became a book and then later a TV show, becoming very successful.

"

My name is Justin Halpern and I created Sh** My Dad Says and I'm author of book by the same name and one of the writers of the television show by the same name.

The Sh** Halpern's Dad Says has attracted a lot of readers, nearly three million followers on Twitter.

Episode: 25. Is Twitter a Two-Way Street?

It was a book that came about from Justin's Twitter feed and was later adapted into a TV show, featuring humorous anecdotes from his father's sayings.

"

My name is Justin Halpern and I created Shit My Dad Says and I'm author of a book by the same name and one of the writers of the television show by the same name.

Here's the blurb from Halpern's Twitter page. It says, I'm 29. I live with my 74-year-old dad. He is awesome. I just write down shit that he says.

The shit that Halpern's dad says has attracted a lot of readers, more than two million followers on Twitter. In fact, it was his Twitter feed that led to the book that led to the TV show.

Commuting in America II: The Second National Report on Commuting Patterns and Trends Cover

Alan Pisarki

Commuting in America II

The Second National Report on Commuting Patterns and Trends

Alan Pesarsky's series of books, 'Commuting in America', were referenced in the discussion about transportation behavior, particularly the decline of hitchhiking and the rise of personal car usage.

"

He used to work for the U.S. Department of Transportation and he wrote a series of books called Commuting in America.

— Episode: 68. The Power of the President -- and th...

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Episode: 68. The Power of the President -- and the Thumb

Alan Pesarsky's series of books, 'Commuting in America', were referenced in the discussion about transportation behavior, particularly the decline of hitchhiking and the rise of personal car usage.

"

He used to work for the U.S. Department of Transportation and he wrote a series of books called Commuting in America.

A Different Way to Win: Dan Rooney's Story from the Super Bowl to the Rooney Rule Cover

Jim Rooney

A Different Way to Win

Dan Rooney's Story from the Super Bowl to the Rooney Rule

It was written by Dan Rooney's son, Jim, and was described as a beatification of his father's character and leadership, highlighting his values and impact on the Steelers organization.

"

Most books written by an offspring, he writes, fall into one of two categories, a tell-all or a beatification.

— Episode: 603. Did the N.F.L. Solve Diversity Hiri...

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Episode: 603. Did the N.F.L. Solve Diversity Hiring? (Part...

It was written by Dan Rooney's son, Jim, and was described as a beatification of his father's character and leadership, highlighting his values and impact on the Steelers organization.

"

Most books written by an offspring, he writes, fall into one of two categories, a tell-all or a beatification.

Jim Rooney argues that his father was successful with the Steelers because of the kind of person he was. Honest, humble, compassionate.

Episode: 603. Did the N.F.L. Solve Diversity Hiring? (Part...

It was written by Jim Rooney about his father, Dan Rooney, and was described as a beatification rather than a tell-all. It focused on Dan's character, highlighting his honesty, humility, and compassion.

"

Most books written by an offspring, he writes, fall into one of two categories, a tell-all or a beatification.

This book falls into the latter.

Jim Rooney argues that his father was successful with the Steelers because of the kind of person he was.

Honest, humble, compassionate.

He wasn't colorful like his father, the chief, but Dan Rooney cared about building things well, running things well, and he didn't need to get the credit.

No Judgment: Essays Cover

Lauren Oyler

No Judgment

Essays

It was mentioned as a collection of essays, including one titled 'My Anxiety', where the author discussed her personal experience with internet addiction and how it's related to her anxieties.

"

Euler recently published a collection of essays called No Judgment. One of the pieces is titled My Anxiety.

— Episode: 602. Is Screen Time as Poisonous as We T...

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Episode: 602. Is Screen Time as Poisonous as We Think?

It was mentioned as a collection of essays, including one titled 'My Anxiety', where the author discussed her personal experience with internet addiction and how it's related to her anxieties.

"

Euler recently published a collection of essays called No Judgment. One of the pieces is titled My Anxiety.

Episode: 602. Is Screen Time as Poisonous as We Think?

Lauren Oyler discussed her own struggles with internet addiction, comparing it to other addictions like smoking, and reflected on how anxiety can be exacerbated by social media.

"

Over the last seven or eight years, I have struggled with what I am quite comfortable calling an Internet addiction.

I have met great friends on social media. I've gotten boyfriends on social media, but at the same time, I do strongly feel that it can produce an actual addiction like a straightforward addiction, like a drug addiction.

It's the same sort of thought process about like compulsively wanting to either look at Twitter or like smoke a cigarette.

I think anxiety does create a barrier around actually doing things you're sitting in worrying about and sitting and looking at your phone is just kind of externalizing this worrying feeling, right?

I get anxious that I'll become depressed and depressed that I'm so anxious.

Hot Mess (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 19) (Volume 19) Cover

Jeff Kinney

Hot Mess (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 19) (Volume 19)

The host noted that Jeff Kinney authored the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, which have sold over 300million copies, and that his character Greg Hefley has been featured as a giant balloon in the Macy's parade for 16 years.

"

Jeff Kinney, author of The Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, which have sold more than 300 million copies.

— Episode: Dying Is Easy. Retail Is Hard. (Update)

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Episode: Dying Is Easy. Retail Is Hard. (Update)

The host noted that Jeff Kinney authored the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, which have sold over 300million copies, and that his character Greg Hefley has been featured as a giant balloon in the Macy's parade for 16 years.

"

Jeff Kinney, author of The Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, which have sold more than 300 million copies.

For the past 16 years, Kinney has had a giant balloon in the Macy's parade, a balloon of Greg Hefley, the wimpy kid himself.

Episode: Is Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade Its Most Valuable As...

The series was repeatedly discussed as the basis for a longrunning Macy's parade balloon and as Jeff Kinney's bestselling franchise.

"

That is Jeff Kinney. I'm an owner of an unlikely story bookstore in Plainville, Massachusetts, and I am the author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Kinney has written 20 books in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, which have sold more than 300 million copies.

This is Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's Messiah Cover

Charles King

Every Valley

The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's Messiah

The book was cited as explaining the public reaction to Handel's Messiah, noting the audience's astonishment and wonder, and it was used to illustrate how Handel's Dublin success rescued his finances.

"

And that is Charles King, a political scientist at Georgetown and author of the book Every Valley. We heard from him in part one of the series as well.

— Episode: 656. How Handel Got His Mojo Back

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Episode: 656. How Handel Got His Mojo Back

The book was cited as explaining the public reaction to Handel's Messiah, noting the audience's astonishment and wonder, and it was used to illustrate how Handel's Dublin success rescued his finances.

"

And that is Charles King, a political scientist at Georgetown and author of the book Every Valley. We heard from him in part one of the series as well.

Here again is Charles King. The impulse behind it originally was the idea that we didn't have to live in a world in which people were just abandoned to their fate, that the wealthy, the wellconnected, had both the responsibility to and the means to create an institution that could help solve the problem.

Episode: 655. “The Greatest Piece of Participatory Art Ever...

The book examined Handel's Messiah, arguing it was the greatest piece of participatory art and explored the darkness and hope surrounding its creation and legacy.

"

Charles King, a political scientist at Georgetown, recently published a book about Messiah called Every Valley. He argues that Messiah has a good claim to being the greatest piece of participatory art ever created.

In 2024, he published a book called Every Valley, The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times That Made Handel's Messiah.

Part of the book Every Valley is about the darkness that so many people associated with this piece of music experience and were experiencing at the time.

When I was writing Every Valley at some point in the middle of the project, I said to my wife, I can't get over the wigs. I just can't relate to these people.

I don't think there's been a day since that day when I discovered your book back in December of 2024 that I haven't listened to Messiah for at least half an hour and often three or four hours.

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood Cover

Trevor Noah

Born a Crime

Stories from a South African Childhood

It was discussed as a memoir about the author's upbringing in South Africa during apartheid and his relationship with his mother. It was highlighted as being more than just about apartheid, but also about the author's personal journey.

"

Today on Freakonomics Radio, Trevor Noah on politics, race, religion and his excellent new memoir Born a Crime.

— Episode: 272. Trevor Noah Has a Lot to Say

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Episode: 272. Trevor Noah Has a Lot to Say

It was discussed as a memoir about the author's upbringing in South Africa during apartheid and his relationship with his mother. It was highlighted as being more than just about apartheid, but also about the author's personal journey.

"

Today on Freakonomics Radio, Trevor Noah on politics, race, religion and his excellent new memoir Born a Crime.

I don't think people would see it as a book about me growing up in apartheid.

It's not really that. Apartheid was merely the container that my life existed within. If anything, it's a story of myself and my mom.

Trevor Noah was born in South Africa in 1984. His mother was black and African, his father white and European. This meant that Noah was technically Born a Crime, the title of his book.

The Politics Industry: How Political Innovation Can Break Partisan Gridlock and Save Our Democracy Cover

Katherine M. Gehl

The Politics Industry

How Political Innovation Can Break Partisan Gridlock and Save Our Democracy

The book, published in 2020, explores the political system as an industry lacking real competition, where the primary beneficiaries are the industry itself and its participants, including media. The authors argue that the lack of competition allows Democrats and Republicans to create narrow partisan bases, leaving the vast majority of Americans feeling disaffected.

"

In 2020, Michael Porter and Catherine Gale published a book called The Politics Industry.

— Episode: 595. Why Don't We Have Better Candidates...

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Episode: 595. Why Don't We Have Better Candidates for Presi...

The book, published in 2020, explores the political system as an industry lacking real competition, where the primary beneficiaries are the industry itself and its participants, including media. The authors argue that the lack of competition allows Democrats and Republicans to create narrow partisan bases, leaving the vast majority of Americans feeling disaffected.

"

In 2020, Michael Porter and Catherine Gale published a book called The Politics Industry.

Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy: Third Edition Cover

Joseph A Schumpeter

Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy

Third Edition

This book by Joseph Schumpeter championed the virtues of capitalism, arguing against the growing influence of communism and socialism in the wake of the Soviet Union's victories during World War II.

"

Joseph Schumpeter describing the virtues of capitalism as against communism and socialism at a time when many of the young were swept away by the great victories of the Soviet Union in the Second Worl...

— Episode: 586. How Does the Lost World of Vienna S...

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Episode: 586. How Does the Lost World of Vienna Still Shape...

This book by Joseph Schumpeter championed the virtues of capitalism, arguing against the growing influence of communism and socialism in the wake of the Soviet Union's victories during World War II.

"

Joseph Schumpeter describing the virtues of capitalism as against communism and socialism at a time when many of the young were swept away by the great victories of the Soviet Union in the Second World War were embracing communism or at least state socialism.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Other Stories (Leather-bound Classics) Cover

Lewis Carroll

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Other Stories (Leather-bound Classics)

The host recalled reading the classic as a college sophomore and later rereading it aloud to his young daughter, noting how the story reflects a child's perspective on arbitrary rules.

"

Have you read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland?

— Episode: 662. If You’re Not Cheating, You’re Not...

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Episode: 662. If You’re Not Cheating, You’re Not Trying

The host recalled reading the classic as a college sophomore and later rereading it aloud to his young daughter, noting how the story reflects a child's perspective on arbitrary rules.

"

Have you read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland?

I read it when I was a sophomore in college ... I picked up the same copy I'd had in college. It was filled with meticulous notes ... then I started reading it to my daughter and realized I'd completely missed the point of this book.

Man's Search For Meaning: The classic tribute to hope from the Holocaust (With New Material) Cover

Viktor E. Frankl

Man's Search For Meaning

The classic tribute to hope from the Holocaust (With New Material)

It was recommended as a thought-provoking book that will make the listener think, as it made Tom Garfinkel think.

"

If you haven't read it, I'd suggest you do. It will make you think as it made Tom Garfinkel think.

— Episode: 557. When Is a Superstar Just Another Em...

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Episode: 557. When Is a Superstar Just Another Employee?

It was recommended as a thought-provoking book that will make the listener think, as it made Tom Garfinkel think.

"

If you haven't read it, I'd suggest you do. It will make you think as it made Tom Garfinkel think.

The Executioner's Toll, 2010: The Crimes, Arrests, Trials, Appeals, Last Meals, Final Words and Executions of 46 Persons in the United States Cover

Matthew T. Mangino

The Executioner's Toll, 2010

The Crimes, Arrests, Trials, Appeals, Last Meals, Final Words and Executions of 46 Persons in the United States

It was discussed as a book exploring common ground and advancing the common good, and Cory Booker mentioned it was written after a period of intense living and reflections on political divisions.

"

When we spoke, he was in the throes of a tour for his new book, which is called United, Thoughts on Finding Common Ground and Advancing the Common Good.

— Episode: 238. The United States of Cory Booker

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Episode: 238. The United States of Cory Booker

It was discussed as a book exploring common ground and advancing the common good, and Cory Booker mentioned it was written after a period of intense living and reflections on political divisions.

"

When we spoke, he was in the throes of a tour for his new book, which is called United, Thoughts on Finding Common Ground and Advancing the Common Good.

You say common ground, I use very purposely the word love.

In Booker's view, this division is the biggest problem in modern politics.

I'm really finished with a stage of my life.

I'm going to do everything I can to help her win and focus on the real urgencies of my life, which is being a great senator and passing some infrastructure stuff I want to do for New Jersey to criminal justice reform.

Better Than the Movies Cover

Lynn Painter

Better Than the Movies

It was one of four books Atul Gawande authored, offering insights into the medical profession from a performance perspective.

"

and Better, A Surgeon's Notes on Performance,

— Episode: 333. The Most Ambitious Thing Humans Hav...

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Episode: 333. The Most Ambitious Thing Humans Have Ever Att...

It was one of four books Atul Gawande authored, offering insights into the medical profession from a performance perspective.

"

and Better, A Surgeon's Notes on Performance,

The 4-Hour Chef: The Simple Path to Cooking Like a Pro, Learning Anything, and Living the Good Life Cover

Timothy Ferriss

The 4-Hour Chef

The Simple Path to Cooking Like a Pro, Learning Anything, and Living the Good Life

It was mentioned as a 670-page book that was not a traditional narrative, but it was considered weird in the best way, and referenced while discussing Tim Ferriss's adventurous culinary nature.

"

And I have this nasty habit of writing long books. So The 4-Hour Chef was 670 pages.

— Episode: 248. How to Be Tim Ferriss

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Episode: 248. How to Be Tim Ferriss

It was mentioned as a 670-page book that was not a traditional narrative, but it was considered weird in the best way, and referenced while discussing Tim Ferriss's adventurous culinary nature.

"

And I have this nasty habit of writing long books. So The 4-Hour Chef was 670 pages.

Your books are so weird in the best way. They're not narrative from beginning to end.

Even when they kind of feel a little bit like those self-help books with boxes and charts, you are just zany in a way that reminds me, I'll be honest with you, of one person more than anyone else which is my mom.

When I read the four hour chef, it strikes me that you're a very adventurous chef and eater.

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich Cover

Timothy Ferriss

The 4-Hour Workweek

Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich

It was discussed as a book that aimed to provide tools and principles for increasing hourly output, and the title itself was a result of testing many different titles using Google AdWords.

"

So your first book, The Four Hour Work Week, I am curious because I don't know, the word I'm looking for is not fraud, but I'm pretty sure you work many more hours than four hours per week yourself.

— Episode: 248. How to Be Tim Ferriss

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Episode: 248. How to Be Tim Ferriss

It was discussed as a book that aimed to provide tools and principles for increasing hourly output, and the title itself was a result of testing many different titles using Google AdWords.

"

So your first book, The Four Hour Work Week, I am curious because I don't know, the word I'm looking for is not fraud, but I'm pretty sure you work many more hours than four hours per week yourself.

Well, the objective of the book for those people who haven't read it, and I'm sure many of the people have not, is to provide you with tools and principles for 10xing your hourly output.

The Four Hour Work Week title was one of 12 titles that I tested on Google AdWords.

And that performed the best of the options that I had.

But the other kind of misperception of the Four Hour Work Week is that, especially because it's got a palm tree on the cover, the objective is not to stare out into space rubbing cocoa butter on your belly for the rest of your life.

The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time Cover

Jeffrey D. Sachs

The End of Poverty

Economic Possibilities for Our Time

It was mentioned as a book where Sachs used a metaphor of a ladder of development to explain how to help the poorest people get onto the ladder and then climb up using market forces.

"

And so when I wrote the book, The End of Poverty in 2005, I used the metaphor of the ladder of development and I said that it is often crucial to help the poorest of the poor get onto...

— Episode: 149. Pontiff-icating on the Free-Market...

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Episode: 149. Pontiff-icating on the Free-Market System

It was mentioned as a book where Sachs used a metaphor of a ladder of development to explain how to help the poorest people get onto the ladder and then climb up using market forces.

"

And so when I wrote the book, The End of Poverty in 2005, I used the metaphor of the ladder of development and I said that it is often crucial to help the poorest of the poor get onto the ladder.

The Hero with a Thousand Faces (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell) Cover

Joseph Campbell

The Hero with a Thousand Faces (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell)

It was brought up in relation to the concept of "returning the boon" in life, reflecting Ray Dalio's view on the greater satisfaction he finds in helping others succeed rather than solely achieving personal success.

"

It's very interesting because if you look at Joseph Campbell's Hero of a Thousand Faces, it's almost exactly like that. There was a part of that book, maybe I'm answering too long but anyway. No, no,...

— Episode: 330. Extra: Ray Dalio Full Interview

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Episode: 330. Extra: Ray Dalio Full Interview

It was brought up in relation to the concept of "returning the boon" in life, reflecting Ray Dalio's view on the greater satisfaction he finds in helping others succeed rather than solely achieving personal success.

"

It's very interesting because if you look at Joseph Campbell's Hero of a Thousand Faces, it's almost exactly like that. There was a part of that book, maybe I'm answering too long but anyway. No, no, I love this. My son gave me the book in 2014 and he describes that phase of your life as returning the boon.

Pride and Prejudice Cover

Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice

It was discussed as an example of how Jane Austen's writing contains manipulative characters and situations, and how those situations are strategically used within the story's narrative.

"

But Michael Che's point isn't just that Jane Austen is doing all this in her novels, Emma and Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park and Sense and Sensibility.

— Episode: 132. Jane Austen, Game Theorist

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Episode: 132. Jane Austen, Game Theorist

It was discussed as an example of how Jane Austen's writing contains manipulative characters and situations, and how those situations are strategically used within the story's narrative.

"

But Michael Che's point isn't just that Jane Austen is doing all this in her novels, Emma and Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park and Sense and Sensibility.

So like, for example, like in Pride and Prejudice.

Note: The book recommendations on this page are discovered automatically from podcast transcripts, and may be incorrect or incomplete.