I really liked his book "Intellectuals and Society" as well. Of course, it is opinionated but there's also a lot of great insight on the root of disagreements in politics. His theory being that there are two broad competing visions of the world: the utopian vs the tragic. Thomas Sowell himself adheres to the tragic vision (e.g. human nature is essentially unchanging and that man is naturally inherently self-interested, etc.).

Yes, Sowell has that effect on people. Once you get your mind back together, I recommend that you (and anyone) read Zola's masterpiece, Germinal, a testament to the virtues of capitalism.