Range - David Epstein
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My recommendation: 9/10
→ Read or listen on Scribd.com (2 months free with this link) or use a direct link! (without 2 free months)
I really loved the book. As I listened to the audio book, I have don’t notes available. Unfortunately, the publisher removed it from Scribd. You can buy the book from the link above or below.
Summary of notes and ideas (The Atlantic)
David Epstein’s new book, Range, isn’t about parenting per se, but Epstein thought a lot about parenting while he was writing it. And not just because his first child was born a few months before its publication.
Range, a book about the value of being a generalist rather than a lifelong or career-long specialist, argues that many of the most effective people in elite professional fields (such as sports, art, and scientific research) succeed not despite the fact but because they find their way to that particular field after pursuing other endeavors first. The concept of parenting, particularly the guidance and gatekeeping of children’s hobbies and interests, seems to consistently hover just outside the page margins—because it’s hard to argue that anyone plays a more vital role in overseeing people’s academic, artistic, and athletic pursuits early in life than their parents. As Epstein put it in an interview with me, “Before this was even a book idea, I was interested in [early childhood] specialization, particularly in sports. And you cannot interact with that area without parents being front and center.” Range’s primary takeaways for parents are both clear and counterintuitive to contemporary parenting wisdom: Let kids find out on their own that they’re passionate about something, and let them quit and pursue something else when they find out they aren’t.
Continue reading the summary on The Atlantic or check out the book directly.
→ Read or listen on Scribd.com (2 months free with this link) or use a direct link! (without 2 free months)