This is a book about the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) method developed by Sydney Parnes (academic) and Alex Osborne - inventor of the term brainstorming and author of Applied Imagination.
The CPS method consists of six main steps to explore a problem, brainstorm then getting into action. These steps are:
This book is a novel where Creative Problem Solving is used by the main character. I wondered at first if the book was going to be readable, but after reading a few chapters I was pleasantly surprised. The characters are believable and the plot kept me hooked to the point where I couldn't put the book down toward the dramatic climax.
Jack is the main character - a young man in a dead end job dreaming about success as a photographer but stuck for ideas on how to achieve his goal. Manny appears early in the story and acts as Jack's mentor in the use of CPS. Romance enters the story in the form of Molly who he meets at a cafe.
Stories are a great way to teach and Fraley is successful in using the story of a young man's path of becoming an entrepreneur to demonstrate creative thinking in action. You could get information on CPS from other books but this story about Jack will ensure you remember the techniques. There is a summary of CPS at the end of the book and this serves as a useful reference.
I would recommend this book as a fun introduction to the well-established model for identifying problems and developing ideas and taking them into action.