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  • Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell

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Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell

4.9 out of 5 stars (1,950)

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A “fascinating” and “rare” (National Review) biography of Thomas Sowell, one of America’s most influential conservative thinkers

Thomas Sowell is one of the great social theorists of our age. In a career spanning more than a half century, he has written over thirty books, covering topics from economic history and social inequality to political theory, race, and culture. His bold and unsentimental assaults on liberal orthodoxy have endeared him to many readers but have also enraged fellow intellectuals, the civil-rights establishment, and much of the mainstream media. The result has been a lack of acknowledgment of his scholarship among critics who prioritize political correctness.

In the first-ever biography of Sowell, Jason L. Riley gives this iconic thinker his due and responds to the detractors.
Maverick showcases Sowell’s most significant writings and traces the life events that shaped his ideas and resulted in a Black orphan from the Jim Crow South becoming one of our foremost public intellectuals.
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From the Publisher

Blurb from American Spectator for MAVERICK

Blurb from National Review for MAVERICK

Blurb from Kirkus Reviews for MAVERICK

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Fascinating… Riley has achieved something rare in the field of intellectual biography­ — a recounting of a distinguished scholar’s life that draws on popular interest in Thomas Sowell the person and directs it to a lucid survey of Sowell’s volumi­nous intellectual output.”―National Review

“Sowell’s vast and diverse intellectual output, devoured over the decades by a loyal readership, screamed for a biography a long time ago. Jason Riley delivers, in a pleasing style that arrives as a must-read for any fan of Thomas Sowell, what the public so wanted but inexplicably did not receive until now.”―
American Spectator

“Riley’s presentation of Sowell and his ideas is particularly important because it comes at a time when the Republican Party stresses its interest in reaching out to working-class and non-white voters. Sowell is one of the most influential black conservatives of the past 100 years.”―
Daily Caller

“Riley, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and columnist for the 
Wall Street Journal, has done an admirable job distilling Sowell’s 90 years, 30-odd books, and countless columns into a single volume. Maverick will delight Sowell’s biggest fans and help introduce new generations to the man and his work.”―Washington Free Beacon

“An idea-centered life of the noted economist and political commentator. . . . This will be valuable to students of economics, Black conservatism, and public policy.”―
Kirkus

“Thomas Sowell is among the most brilliant thinkers in the world today—deep, original, creative, fearless, intimidatingly erudite. His gripping and improbable life story can only magnify one’s awe at this astonishing man’s accomplishments.”―
Steven Pinker, author of How the Mind Works and Enlightenment Now

“Maverick is a brilliant intellectual biography of one of the most important thinkers of our time. Jason Riley writes lucidly and engagingly, illuminating ideas of Sowell’s that are more timely today than ever, dispelling many myths along the way.”―Amy Chua, author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and Political Tribes

“Enlightened opinion has it that the views of conservative black thinkers are boilerplate canards dismissible with a few statistics. Enlightened opinion is also uninformed by — and quite dismissible in the light of — the life's work of Thomas Sowell. At last a biography that shows how and why.”―
John McWhorter, Columbia University

“With the publication of “Maverick,” Jason Riley has rendered  an enormous service by providing a compelling, informed and elegant intellectual biography of the great Thomas Sowell. It was obviously a labor of love. As a professional economist and Windy City native, I especially appreciated Riley's nuanced, deeply researched account of Sowell's roots in the Chicago School of economic thought, as it was led by Milton Friedman and George Stigler in the 1950s and 1960s.”―
Glenn Loury, Brown University

“There are two important ambitions at work in this book. The first gives historical context to Thomas Sowell’s extraordinary genius. The second shows how his work spawned a new, post-60s conservative consciousness in black America. It looks with openness and courage at the often-awkward encounter between conservatism and racial conflicts. But most of all, this is the inspiring story of one of the greatest American thinkers who has ever lived.”―
Shelby Steele, author of Shame

About the Author

Jason L. Riley is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a columnist for the Wall Street Journal. He is the author of several other books, including Please Stop Helping Us and The Affirmative Action Myth.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Basic Books
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 25, 2021
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ First Edition
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1541619684
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1541619685
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 1 x 9.5 inches
  • Best Sellers Rank: #137,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.9 out of 5 stars (1,950)

About the author

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Jason L Riley
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Jason Riley is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, where he has written about politics, economics, education, immigration and social inequality for more than 20 years. He’s also a frequent public speaker and provides commentary for television and radio news outlets.

After joining the Journal in 1994, Mr. Riley was named a senior editorial page writer in 2000 and a member of the Editorial Board in 2005. He joined the Manhattan Institute, a public policy think tank focused on urban affairs, in 2015.

Mr. Riley is the author of four books: Let Them In: The Case for Open Borders (2008); Please Stop Helping Us: How Liberals Make It Harder for Blacks to Succeed (2014); False Black Power? (2017); and the forthcoming Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell (May 2021).

Customer reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
1,950 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find this biography compellingly written and easy to understand, praising its superb summary of Sowell's intellectual contributions. Moreover, the book is well-researched and engaging, with one customer noting how it captures both the man and his ideas. Additionally, they appreciate its clarity, with one review highlighting how it succinctly summarizes Dr. Sowell's work.
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113 customers mention content, 110 positive, 3 negative
Customers find this biography to be an amazing and important book about a great man, with one customer specifically praising how it chronicles Sowell's prolific work.
Great book. It's simple but full of information about Sowell, his past, and how he formed many of his ideas. Riley is a great author.Read more
Great read. Get one for every kid you are trying to raise in this horrible environment today.Read more
Excellent read. I only knew Sowell from quotes on X. Learned some of his story, his genius and some history lessons from this well done book.Read more
Excellent book about an American intellectual giant and gem. I have a great deal of admiration for Mr. Riley and his ideas too....Read more
84 customers mention informative, 84 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the biography informative and well-researched, providing a superb summary of Thomas Sowell's intellectual contributions.
...lays it out brilliantly and Jason Riley “Thank You” for an excellent biography!Read more
...T Sowell A well researched and very interesting biography of a brilliant critical thinker.Read more
Informative and well written biography focusing on the intellectual achievements and contributions of Thomas Sowell....Read more
...his vast career finally documented in biographical form - an intellectual biography. This is by far the assessment out there....Read more
53 customers mention thought-provoking, 53 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the biography thought-provoking, praising Thomas Sowell as one of the smartest men in America and a great American thinker.
...excellent book for those looking to understand Dr. Thomas Sowell’s brilliant mind and data driven research....Read more
An great bio of one of the greatest minds we have, an amazing story of an amazing man....Read more
...Excellent thinker and writerRead more
This good survey of one of the great intellectuals of the 20th and early 21st Century of the USA....Read more
41 customers mention writing quality, 41 positive, 0 negative
Customers praise the writing quality of the biography, noting it is compellingly written by Jason Riley and serves as a brilliant summation of Sowell's work.
...Well written as well.Read more
3.5 stars. Loved the first two-thirds of this book. It was well-written and I learned a lot more about Sowell's professional journey and his fact-...Read more
This book is so impressive, so well written, and so profound i could not put it down. Optimistic, hopeful and deeply engaging.Read more
This is a well written biography of one of the most brilliant American minds. You will increase brain cells the more you are in his presence!...Read more
18 customers mention readability, 18 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book highly readable and easy to understand, with one customer noting it covers 248 pages.
I could read this again, it is so good. It is an easy read, and full of interesting detail about the life and thinking of Thomas Sowell....Read more
...This book is easy to read and touches on a multitude of subjects that captured Sowell's interest and were researched throughout his life....Read more
...enjoy and learn from his work. An easy book to read and it is structured in a sensible manner to better follow Sowell's work and odysseyRead more
...This highly readable book succinctly summarizes Dr. Sowell's superb, well thought out discussion of failed political/economic/social/educational...Read more
16 customers mention engaging, 16 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the biography engaging and interesting, with one customer noting how it sucks readers right in, while another mentions it provides a fascinating look into Sowell's life.
...AN INTERESTING AND EDIFYING LOOK AT HOW THE WORLD REALLY WORKS.Read more
...written in that easy-to-understand style as well, which makes it a joy to read....Read more
This is simply one of the most important and engaging books that I have read in recent years....Read more
...Optimistic, hopeful and deeply engaging.Read more
10 customers mention story, 10 positive, 0 negative
Customers enjoy the biography's story, with one customer describing it as a captivating account of a true American hero and another noting how it debunks popular narratives.
Jason Riley has written an excellent book about the life and mind of Thomas Sowell. I highly recommend it....Read more
...has been a highly productive, fearless, and convincing economist, historian, and social critic for over half a century....Read more
An great bio of one of the greatest minds we have, an amazing story of an amazing man....Read more
...In fact it is the opposite. It debunks the popular narrative with something rarely seen - analytical proof! Well written as well.Read more
9 customers mention clarity, 9 positive, 0 negative
Customers appreciate the book's clarity, with one customer noting how it succinctly summarizes Dr. Sowell's work.
...It is succinct, but full of wisdom that can only be acquired in a lifetime dedicated in search for the truth!Read more
...helping get the word out to a wider audience about this man and his clear-headed, logical, and fact-based understanding of what is wrong with so...Read more
Clarity and history....Read more
...I devoured this incredibly clear and easy to read biography....Read more
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