Thursday, October 7, 2010

The Butterfly Effect By Andy Andrews

Do you ever wonder if you're making a difference - if anything you do is ever going to amount to anything significant?

Andy Andrews takes on this universal question in his latest book, The Butterfly Effect. This work is a coffee table style book that can be read cover to cover in about 15 minutes (20 if you're a slow reader like me). Using historical examples, Andrews puts forth the notion that everything we do, even the most mundane things, has meaning.


The book starts off with an explanation of The Law of Sensitive Dependence Upon Initial Conditions, more commonly known as the butterfly effect. Simply put, the butterfly effect states that a butterfly could flap its wings, putting molecules of air in motion that could eventually be capable of starting a hurricane on the other side of the world. The book goes on to relay the true butterfly effect stories of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, a Colonel in the Union Army, and George Washington Carver (an even more fascinating story in my opinion).

This book would be the perfect gift for a teenager or college graduate or for anyone who struggles to find meaning in their lives (and really who doesn't?). It's an uplifting reminder of how all of our actions, big or small, reverberate.



Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255  “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”