Factfulness by Hans Rosling: Review

About the Author

Factfulness is a book written by Hans Rosling. Hans Rosling was known for his quirky, yet highly informative TED talks. He used bubble graphs and demonstrations in order to talk about the world and our perception of it.

Factfulness

This book was recommended to me by quite a few people and I am so glad that I read it. It will change your perception of the world today for the better. 

Hans Rosling is unlike any author I know (in both book form and speech). He engages his audience with thrilling tales and interactions. For example, he begins the book with a tale of his time in the circus (which I will not spoil) and then has his readers answer a quiz on their world view.

He addresses many issues with our collective world view from ‘western’ countries. He explains that our world view is not only outdated, but on many occasions completely incorrect. This should fill you with hope, as he explains that on the most part, our perception of the world is more negative than reality.

This book encourages its readers to not be swayed by the negative messages of the media. But rather look to facts and statistics upon which to base their world view and opinions.

The majority of issues within the world are improving, Rosling explains. With only a few exceptions. 

I would highly recommend this book to everyone. No matter your interests, everyone has a world view. This book helps you to refine it and learn better ways to develop it. 

Through looking at statistics from organisations such as the United Nations or the World Health Organisation, more of your knowledge of the world will be based on fact.

Final Thoughts

With everything that is going on in the media and in the world this year, it is important to make sure that our beliefs and views are based on facts. This book will help you develop skills to find the facts in the constant deluge of information. 

You can purchase the book through Waterstones here.