Three general thoughts about this book:

1. It was generally interesting (although not concise), and made me think about investments in new ways.

2. He claims that his "antifragile" idea is so original, there is no word for it in any of the major languages. The problem with this claim is that any serious student of the Bible will recognize his "new" idea as the old "refiner's fire." Difficulties and hardships help us to grow and improve.

3. It would be better to read this book. LIstening when driving in traffic makes it difficult to give it the level of concentration it deserves.

Finally, he must have been dropped on his head by an academic when he was a baby. He has a level of animosity towards them that makes me grin, but seems unjustified.

Even if I had anything negative to say about this book (which I don't), those negative things would further draw your attention to this book!

There were a lot of comparisons to the markets of today I liked.

Nero and Fat Tony's views of the current economic situation.

Yes, it made me re-evaluate my thinking about the world and how I can better myself by living a less risky life by having the right KIND of risk.

The only negative thing I have to say is that the author promotes his profession as a writer more than I cared to hear.

I thought this would be a book about investing strategy. It is so much more. I will have to buy the hard copy and re-read it several times. There is a lot of meat to digest. Five-star work all the way. Taleb's comparison of the current state of academic research at publish-or-perish institutions with counterfeit watches is spot-on. I do not know of any practitioners in my field who bother to read any of the "leading journals" of academic research. Joe Ochman's narration is also outstanding. He does an excellent job coping with Taleb's broad vocabulary of unfamiliar English words smattered with foreign words like "flâneur." This book will expand your vocabulary if nothing else! I write mainly to voice my strong objection to the producer's decision to bleep Taleb's occasional use of expletives. Taleb is nothing if not a wordsmith and when he inserts an expletive it is for effect, either to show contempt for the idea he is debunking or to get the reader's attention. There is no excuse for the producer inserting a loud "bleep" over words like "bullsh*t." I listened to this book in the car and the bleeps are higher in volume that the surrounding speech. On several occasions, I thought someone was honking at me! The bleeps are unnecessary and disconcerting. May I suggest revising the recorded book to omit the bleeps? An excellent book that deserves a listen from every thoughtful person who is disturbed by current trends in academic research.

never

no substance. no analysis. no deepening. just repetitions and platitudes.

disappointment. waste of time and money.

I was motivated to by buy the book by an interview with Mr. Taleb in "The Economist"

I've read all his books and, like all the others, I feel lost for the first chapter and then... it starts to click and I understand what he's talking about. Really interesting smack down of economic icons and I couldn't agree more. "Skin in the game" doesn't guarantee good results but it does keep one honest. I highly recommend this book but, unfortunately the politicians who need to read this probably won't.

Nassim Nicholas Taleb has an abrasive personality which comes through very strongly in his writing. A lot of people will be turned off by that, but if you can get past that and really listen to his ideas you will be rewarded with well though out ideas that are presented in an easy to understand way. His books should not be considered light reading, you will need to spend time thinking about them to digest the ideas! I love his books and look forward to each new one. You may not agree with everything he says but his books will get your juices flowing and get you thinking. What more can you ask for from a book?

Yes, I need too.

The Drunkards Walk
Black Swan (of course)

I must have. They all read better than I do.

His overall strength of purpose and his wellingness to tell some "want to bees" to kiss off was good for him .

Listen and observe.

I might listen to some parts that I want to 'go over' again. Most of the book is relative easy but some ideas worth a second visit.

The black swan is similar in the way of telling the ideas using stories.

Fat Tony from Brooklyn.

No.

The definition of Anti-fragility and consideration of this new concept in a wide range of contexts.

The logical definition of a vastly under-appreciated concept followed by persuasive examples of the many contexts in which it apples, including human physiology, biology more broadly, investment decisions, and macro-economics.

No.

Robustness is not the opposite of fragility.

Almost impossible to apply the author's findings to a practical application.

Ablsolutely Not!

Extreme disappointment.

Total waste of my money!