The Art of Fairness
The Power of Decency in a World Turned Mean
“Bodanis is clearly one of the good guys and this book is a cheering, timely, inspirational reminder, as we witness a new dawn in the American presidency, that they – we – can succeed, without losing our souls.”
— Christina Patterson, The Sunday Times, 15 November 2020
How to succeed without losing your soul is the core question at the heart of this book – and here’s a video on how I came to the conclusion that you can do it, but it’s not easy. Which is why it takes a whole book of insights to explain how to do it.
I give those insights through a series of biographies. There's the man who coined the phrase ‘Nice Guys Finish Last’ (and did, as it turns out, finish last); there's a calm London debutante, who became a successful guerrilla leader; the striking way the Empire State Building was constructed in just 13 months; most aptly, the story of how the American President FDR, in an era much like our own, prevailed against demagogues through a mix of fairness plus street smarts – something that decent sorts of all periods can benefit from.
Book launch highlights
Watch the full launch video
Watch the interview
Reviews
“Bodanis’s book is more than a business book, it is a primer for anyone fed up of the prevailing meanness of much of society, and looking for inspiration on how to be better and fix things for others. ”
“Bodanis is clearly one of the good guys and this book is a cheering, timely, inspirational reminder, as we witness a new dawn in the American presidency, that they – we – can succeed, without losing our souls. ”
““David Bodanis, a writer best known for his science books, has turned his attention to the issue of how leaders should exercise their authority. The core message can be found in the subtitle: ‘The power of decency in a world turned mean’.
“It is a wise lesson. Ruling by fear may work for a while, but it is doomed to fail in the long run”