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Complex systems are one of my favorite subjects and The Systems Bible is a great entry in the genre.

Simple systems are a sum of their parts: a bike is just a bunch of parts. If you take a wheel off and replace it with another, no big deal.

In a complex system, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. If you take the heart out of a horse and then replace it a few hours later, it doesn’t start working again like a bike. This does not mean we can’t understand complex systems, only that they play by a different rulebook which The Systems Bible attempts (and largely succeeds) at capturing with quotes like:

“A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked. A complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be patched up to make it work. You have to start over with a working simple system.�
and

“SYSTEMS TEND TO MALFUNCTION CONSPICUOUSLY JUST AFTER THEIR GREATEST TRIUMPH:
Toynbee explains this effect by pointing out the strong tendency to apply a previously-successful strategy to the new challenge:
THE ARMY IS NOW FULLY PREPARED TO FIGHT THE PREVIOUS WAR
For brevity, we shall in future refer to this Axiom as Fully Prepared for the Past (F.P.F.P.)�