Reading Room
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The Tiger That Isn’t by Michael Blastland & Andrew Dilnot If like Benjamin Disraeli famously said, and there really are only three types of lies in this world “Lies, damn lies and Statistics”, we need a way to see through the latter to facts beneath. This book by Michael Blastland and Andrew Dilnot aims to give us, the reader exactly that; the tools we need to take a closer look at the statistics with which we find ourselves bombarded with on a daily basis. In order to see the true results behind the smoke and mirrors, giving us the ability to interpret them for ourselves. The book covers the potentially boring world of statistics and what they mean, but presents them in a way that I found both amusing and informative. As a non statistician I was amazed at my naivety towards numbers and how easily they can be used to bamboozle and confuse. The book covers a wide range of frequently misquoted statistics in areas such as, cancer research, pensions, the NHS, wealth, disease as well as many other areas. These statistics are then explained in a simple fashion which makes you wonder how they were ever misquoted/misused (often to sensationalise an article) in the first place. Everyone knows not to believe everything you read in the papers but I had naively overlooked the statistics angle. Now the part of the news that I had believed prior to reading the book and quoted in discussions to appear smarter has disappeared. As I previously thought that you can’t argue with cold hard statistical facts. However, now I find myself more critical of the statistics I read, and in a better position to interpret them with confidence, in order to make up my own mind on their validity. One early example in the book covers the controversial topic of the state retirement age being increased from 65 to 67. It was then reported in a national paper, that 1 in 5 men would therefore never receive a state pension, having misread a mortality table and no one ever questioned the statistic. The story itself may have caused a few heart attacks in men getting close to that magical age but the true figure is in fact 4% not 20%. One of the most important tools this book teaches us we all already possess but often overlook when faced by the power of statistics - common sense. You have to ask yourself “If you think about it, does this really make sense?” I would have loved more examples but I suspect that they might be saving some material for their radio 4 “More or Less” show or future books so I can’t be too harsh for that. Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Arts, states: “If every politician and journalist were required to read this engaging and eye-opening book ... we would live in a wiser, better-governed world.” I agree with the sentiment entirely.
Published by Profile Books, ISBN# 1861978391
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