“Nassim Taleb’s Antifragile is one of those books that reads like it was written by someone whose favorite hobby is intellectual fencing—except he’s only playing with himself. The whole premise of “things gain from disorder” can feel like a grand way of saying, “Sometimes, things that don’t die, don’t die.” It’s the philosophical equivalent of a contrarian yelling, “I told you so!” after a storm knocked over a tree but left a skyscraper standing.

Taleb spends much of the book railing against “fragility” while bolstering his own intellectual ego. If Antifragile had a subtitle, it might be: Why Everyone Else is Dumb, Except Me (and Maybe Some Old Romans Who Knew What’s Up). He calls out bankers, academics, and just about anyone who didn’t personally learn resilience by fighting wolves in the wilderness—though, let’s face it, the man loves to name-drop himself into his own ideas.

And what about his writing style? It’s like if a Twitter troll discovered a thesaurus and thought, “This is my magnum opus.” It alternates between profound-sounding maxims like “via negativa” and long-winded stories about why you should respect him because he’s read Seneca and knows how to deadlift. In reality, it’s mostly him reinventing the wheel, labeling it “antifragile,” and then telling you you’re too fragile to understand the genius of the wheel.

All said, Taleb’s main point boils down to “don’t be weak, bro” dressed up in a toga of pseudo-philosophy and anecdotal evidence. But, hey, if you’re in the market for a book that’ll make you feel like you’re at an unending dinner party where the host can’t stop explaining why his homemade bread is superior, Antifragile is your jam.”