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Maverick

A Biography of Thomas Sowell

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Maverick

Written by: Jason L Riley
Narrated by: Brad Sanders
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About this listen

 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. Americas Ideologies & Doctrines Politicians Politics & Activism Politics & Government Public Policy Social Sciences United States Social justice Biography Socialism Equality Capitalism

What the critics say

“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, Johnstone Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and the 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, Yale Law professor and author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and Political Tribes: Group Instinct and the Fate of Nations
“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, Professor of Linguistics at Columbia University, Contributing Editor at the Atlantic, and Host of Slate's Lexicon Valley
All stars
Most Relevant
Thoroughly enjoyed this book as an introduction to Sowell’s opus, my first time encountering his works. His stimulating insights demand attention and rigorous consideration. Worthwhile reading for both poles of the political spectrum.

Insightful, thought provoking autobiography

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It really is a shame that there are so few books written about Thomas Sowell. The advantage this one has is that Mr. Sowell has already written so much, in both academic and popular circles, that the author can and does draw upon in this excellent book. If the author’s desire was to kindle in his reader a desire to learn more about Thomas Sowell’s ideas, he has succeeded. My biggest praise and criticism of this wonderful book is that it leaves you wanting to know more.

Maverick

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