The Thinker's Way: 8 Steps to a Richer Life

Beginning with the provocative assertion that ""we have become a society of non-thinkers,"" Chaffee sets out to replicate for a trade audience the academic course in critical thinking he created for the City University of New York and says he has taught to ""thousands of people for the past 20 years."" He offers a thorough, detailed method for ""analyzing complex issues,"" ""evaluating evidence,"" solving problems creatively and ""making informed choices."" Using such examples as the recent court case of nanny Louise Woodward, the issue of human cloning and the Roswell UFO incident, Chaffee meticulously examines factual evidence, various perspectives and possible biases in assessing each case. While providing an excellent course in critical thinking, he seems to trip, however, over one of the very obstacles he describes by focusing solely on rationality and presenting it as a panacea for just about every problem and area of life. In particular, his chapters on relationships and freedom suffer from inattention to emotional, psychological and spiritual perspectives. Chaffee unrealistically advises readers to simply ""will yourself to break free from constraints,"" be they addictions, anxiety attacks or dead-end jobs. As an introductory course in logical reasoning, this effort is superb; as a self-help guide promising that ""your life will be transformed in every area,"" it falls far short. Simultaneous TimeWarner audio; author tour. (Sept.)