Chancing It: Why We Take Risks [Hardcover]

Ralph Keyes (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 311 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown & Co (T); 1st edition (February 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316491322
• ISBN-13: 978-0316491327
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,444,885 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ralph Keyes's sixteen books include the bestselling Is There Life After High School? which became a Broadway musical still produced in this country and abroad. His book Chancing It was a New York Times Notable Book, and The Courage to Write has been in print for 15 years. Keyes has discussed his work on Oprah, The Today Show, Tonight Show, ABC World News Tonight and 20/20 as well as NPR's Fresh Air, All Things Considered, Talk of the Nation, and On the Media. In addition to his books he has written hundreds of articles and essays for publications ranging from GQ to Good Housekeeping. An article Keyes co-authored for the Harvard Business Review won its prestigious McKinsey Award for Best Article of the Year. After graduating from Antioch College in 1967 Keyes spent was Assistant to the Publisher of Long Island's Newsday for two years. After that he spent a decade as a Fellow of the Center for Studies of the Person in La Jolla, California, then worked as a freelance writer in the Philadelphia area Keyes now lives in Yellow Springs, Ohio with his wife Muriel where he writes, lectures, and is a Trustee of the Antioch Writers' Workshop.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The first Ralph Keyes book I read, which made me a fan for life!, January 24, 2007

By 

P. J. (Kansas City, MO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chancing It: Why We Take Risks (Hardcover)

I can honestly say that, as a college student over twenty years ago, reading Chancing It permanently changed my views on life. But this is NOT a self-help book by any stretch of the imagination. Chancing It is a literary dissertation of a caliber rarely found today, full of anticdotes, profiles, interviews and reflections. It is never preachy or simplistic, and never devolves into a hackneyed checklist of options. It doesn't instruct the reader, it simply invites one to come along on a nuanced, fun, credible and sophisticated exploration of the true meaning of "risk" in its broadest sense, why we take risks, and the varied and surprising forms it takes in people's lives. It will perhaps seem dated to a reader today, but there is no better introduction to the subject.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Man on Wire, for example, September 14, 2008

By 

Ejames LIEBERMAN (Potomac, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Chancing It: Why We Take Risks (Hardcover)

The first chapter of Keyes's highly readable book is on Philippe Petit, the subject of the superb 2008 documentary Man on Wire. Petit has his fears, e.g. spiders, marriage and parenthood, and is revealed as an interesting person as well as a unique chance-taker. Sky divers, entrepreneurs, couples in love, etc. get attention. Copious notes but no index or separate bibliography. A fine resource.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Many Risks Are You Taking?, March 24, 2010

By 

stoic (Mobile AL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Chancing It: Why We Take Risks (Hardcover)

Back in 2001, I read Ralph Keyes' Chancing It. At the time, I had a demeaning job and no direction. Risk taking seemed like a possible way to get out of the rut. Chancing It gave me a different perspective on risk, and that helped me through my difficulties.

Ralph Keyes discusses the role that risk plays in our lives. He believes that there are two basic types of risk. Type I risks fill us with adrenaline: skydiving, combat, racing cars, etc. Type II risks involve commitment - marriage, careers, children, etc. Keyes notes that those who excel at taking one type of risk often struggle with the other type.

Chancing It includes great anecdotes about Type I risk takers. Readers meet -

- a Vietnam Vet who turns to drug smuggling to replace the rush of combat,

- an Iowa housewife who moved to California, divorced her husband, and became a stripper, and

- a skydiver who tried to land on St. Louis' Gateway Arch to relieve his boredom.

Keyes' descriptions of Type II risks are not quite as engaging, though they are still interesting.

I reread Chancing It this year (2010) and I remain a big fan. The book will cause readers to change their thinking. Keyes does not fall for the easy out of telling us to "take more risks." Rather, he tells us that we all accept some risks, but avoid others. This book makes a deep impression. I strongly recommend it.