Creativity Books


Cracking Creativity : the Secret of Creative Genius
by Michael Michalko
Ten Speed Press, c1998
ISBN 089815913X (1580083110, pbk.)
$24.95 (17.95 pbk)

Michalko's premise is that by studying the thinking of geniuses we can learn secrets of creative thinking. His idea works well.

The first part, "Seeing What No One Else is Seeing" is learning to look at problems and situations in a different way. He gives a lot of techniques for different perspectives, such as abstracting problems, diagramming and rephrasing. These can be very helpful if you stop and apply them to problems as you are reading.

The second part "Thinking What No One Else is Thinking" talks about using techniques from the first part to break out of conventional ways of thought.

Bottom line: I found the suggestions extremely useful. They really helped me develop new strategies to deal with problems, as well as thinking of better ways to do things which were not yet problems. The random word list alone is worth the price of the book.

Geared toward: Anyone who needs to generate new ideas, find new solutions, or who generally wants to be more creative.


Serious Creativity : Using the Power of Lateral Thinking to Create New Ideas
by Edward de Bono
Advanced Practical Thinking, c1993
ISBN 0887306357
$11.20

Written by the man who crated lateral thinking and provocation, this is a book full of good, solid, practical advice on how to think more creatively about any subject. The book is divided into three parts:

The first part, "The Need for Creative Thinking" talks about creativity philosophically and provides background.

The second part "Lateral Thinking Tools and Techniques" is the practical part of the book. It teaches how to use the lateral thinking and other techniques, such as six hat thinking.

The third part "The Application of Creative Thinking" goes into using creative thinking is organizations, when to use it alone, and when to involve a group.

Bottom line: Plenty of practical advice. Very useful. I especially liked the middle part where the practical suggestions were given. The one irritating part is that de Bono never lets you forget he created Lateral Thinking, but never got proper recognition for it. That shouldn't keep you away from this useful book, though.

By the way, you are likely to find this out of stock, or even out of print. Amazon.com often has used copies for sale, or check your local library.

Geared toward: Anyone wanting to be more creative. If you feel you don't know anything about creativity, you'll learn how to apply simple principles for thinking creatively. If you are already creative, you will pick up good pointers.


Dancing Corndogs in the Night: Reawakening Your Creative Spirit
by Don Hahn
Hyperion, c1999
ISBN 0786863749
$22.95

Written by one of the animators on Disney's Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, this is a wild and crazy look at the life of creativity. Hahn's joy in living and creating leaps from every page.

But along with the humor, the book is full of solid advice on creativity. He talks about the scariness of taking risks, the frustration that can come when things are going right, the downright hard work of making a dream come true, and the amazing thrill when it all happens the way you dreamed it would.

Packed with illustrations from Hahn's life (the dancing corn dogs are from an ad for the refreshment stand at a drive-in), humor, and inspiration, this is an inspirational read in the sense that it will inspire you to get up and get going.

Bottom line: Not a scholarly work, but lots of fun, and full of great advice.

Geared toward: Those who want more creativity in their lives, but are afraid or just plain searching for inspiration


Think Like a Genius
by Todd Siler
Bantam Books, 1996
ISBN: 0553107321 (pbk. 0553379283)
$23.95 (pbk. $15.95)

Siler's thesis in this book is that geniuses think differently than other people. He believes he can teach you to think as a genius thinks. The method of this new thinking is called metaphorming. Metaphorming means to look at something, and then change your view of it by using analogy, metaphor, hypothesis, symbol, pun, role-playing, and other techniques.

The author offers 30 metaphorms to loosen up your thinking and release creativity.

This book is best read a little at a time, stopping to actually do the exercises, and giving your brain a workout.

Bottom line: Great book to help you think more creatively if you are willing to take the time to read slowly and do the exercises.

Geared toward: People who are ready to stretch their ways of thinking.


Handbook of Creativity, 3rd ed.
ed. by Robert J. Sternberg
Cambridge University Press, 1999
ISBN: 0521476040 (pbk.) 0521572851 (hard)
$31.95 (pbk.); $90.00

"The goal of the Handbook of Creativity is to provide the most comprehensive, definitive, and authoritative single-volume review available in the field of creativity." So says the publisher on the back of this book. And they many have succeeded.

This is a compilation of scholarly articles on creativity. The articles are divided into four sections: Methods for Studying Creativity; Origins of Creativity; Creativity, the self, and the Environment; and Special Topics in Creativity.

Articles are fairly short, though often deep, and with bibliographies almost as long as the articles themselves. There is a lot of information packed into this relatively modest volume.

Bottom line: For serious reading only. Don't expect practical ideas here--this is a scholarly work. Also, the type is very small, which can make reading difficult.

Geared toward: An academic audience, or anyone interested in the scientific, psychological aspects of creativity.


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