The Black Swan (Naseem Taleb)

This book is written by a proud sceptic, who challenges all our assumptions about systems and beliefs in modern science and particularly economics. The author worked in large financial firms, and (fore)-saw the downfall of current beliefs. He argues strenuously for people to avoid believing in the charlatans, and demonstrates numerous failings of the systems. But he fails to offer a better way so, despite his displayed intellect and thinking prowess, he comes across as a whiner. This is unfortunate, as I warmed to his message, but I found myself constantly waiting for the great revelation of how things could be run better. It never really appeared.

There is also a follow-up essay from the author - The Fourth Quadrant: A Map of the Limits of Statistics and finally a set of actions for the future. While Mark Vernon argues there is a flaw in the black swan argument.