SocProf reviewed Developing Analytic Talent by Vincent Granville
Review of 'Developing Analytic Talent' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
[Leaving aside the, by now, well-known, pay for Amazon reviews episode.]
This is a mess of a book. Based on other reviews, I see I'm not the only one who found it confusing and certainly not a good illustration of the title. A big chunk of the book is dedicated to defining data science as opposed to what the author calls "fake data science". That is done in a tone that goes from condescending to resentful (with the usual critique that [insert your favorite emerging field] is not properly taught in university, that's par for the course). Then, the author abruptly goes into illustrations that people with no background in statistics (but not the old, bad, statistics, the new cool one developed by the author) will have a hard time following (so, so much for the "developing" part in the title). And the book ends with some job market data …
[Leaving aside the, by now, well-known, pay for Amazon reviews episode.]
This is a mess of a book. Based on other reviews, I see I'm not the only one who found it confusing and certainly not a good illustration of the title. A big chunk of the book is dedicated to defining data science as opposed to what the author calls "fake data science". That is done in a tone that goes from condescending to resentful (with the usual critique that [insert your favorite emerging field] is not properly taught in university, that's par for the course). Then, the author abruptly goes into illustrations that people with no background in statistics (but not the old, bad, statistics, the new cool one developed by the author) will have a hard time following (so, so much for the "developing" part in the title). And the book ends with some job market data (interview questions, salary survey, etc.).
In the end, the author does not give a lot of info on how to start in data science. The entire book, and especially the case chapters, assume extensive knowledge of the field. Readers will find bits and pieces of useful information here and there, but it feels like needles in a hay stack.