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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Although I do think there’s more to some of the issues presented, I love how much Gladwell’s books really make me think.
This was no “Outliers” by any means, but it was able to persuade me not to believe in my own perceptions of mankind because I’m often wrong in my judgement (particularly persuasive in the argument about a machine being able to predict Recidivism better than a judge can....).
The book centred around Sandra Bland’s death and uses various talking points (chapters) to explain how it occurred - parts of the book seem to feel a bit tainted with confirmation bias to try to fit the narrative, but none the less, the evidence-based book was captivating enough.
Best concepts:
1. default to truth - some doubts vs. enough doubts
2. transparency - actions not conforming to accepted norms (Amanda Knox)
3. coupling - a connection existing between behavior & external factors (bridges and suicide rate)
The book centred around Sandra Bland’s death and uses various talking points (chapters) to explain how it occurred - parts of the book seem to feel a bit tainted with confirmation bias to try to fit the narrative, but none the less, the evidence-based book was captivating enough.
Best concepts:
1. default to truth - some doubts vs. enough doubts
2. transparency - actions not conforming to accepted norms (Amanda Knox)
3. coupling - a connection existing between behavior & external factors (bridges and suicide rate)
A must consume as an audiobook. It is as if its a multi-episode podcast but they all connect well. Gladwell never disappoints. And bottom line of the book for me: apply scientific principles correctly and give people some grace.
If you can listen to the audiobook, do, as it’s an “enhanced” audiobook, similar to a podcast.
Very interesting topic, really enjoyed listening to how he connected the dots with all of these different cases. Well worth the read.
Very interesting topic, really enjoyed listening to how he connected the dots with all of these different cases. Well worth the read.
Loved this audiobook production, and the author brings up really interesting points for a perception that makes a lot of sense. I’ll be thinking about this one for a while!
Genuinely interesting subject matter, and each chapter either has a cool idea or interesting story. But as a whole, the ideas are woven together very loosely. The theme and conclusion come off as wanting or misplaced or even arbitrarily attached, while also being borderline offensive.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
3.5 stars. Not at all what I expected, but still an insightful, detailed look at the factors affecting the ways humans misunderstand and deceive each other. The conclusions aren’t groundbreaking, but there are some interesting anecdotes, if you manage to wade your way through unexpectedly gruesome content. It was impressive that they used audio from original sources whenever possible, making this more like a podcast experience, rather than an audiobook.
TW: sexual assault, torture, pedophilia/sexual abuse of minors, suicide, sometimes told through graphic, first-person accounts.
TW: sexual assault, torture, pedophilia/sexual abuse of minors, suicide, sometimes told through graphic, first-person accounts.
From the title, one could be forgiven for thinking that this is a book on how to talk to strangers. It's not. This is not surprising at all to anyone who has read Malcolm Gladwell.
In Talking to Strangers, he does a great job of outlining the biases inherent in our interactions with strangers. He does a great job of explaining how we tend to default to truth. Why doing so makes us more prone to misreading strangers, and why not doing so, believe it or not, makes us less human. He does something similar with transparency, explaining why human beings may not be as transparent as we think. Finally, he delves into the nuances of coupling with a special focus on crime.
In my opinion, coupling as discussed here does not tie well with the topic of talking to strangers. However, Gladwell does a great job of using this "theory" to bring the story of Sandra Bland full circle.
In Talking to Strangers, he does a great job of outlining the biases inherent in our interactions with strangers. He does a great job of explaining how we tend to default to truth. Why doing so makes us more prone to misreading strangers, and why not doing so, believe it or not, makes us less human. He does something similar with transparency, explaining why human beings may not be as transparent as we think. Finally, he delves into the nuances of coupling with a special focus on crime.
In my opinion, coupling as discussed here does not tie well with the topic of talking to strangers. However, Gladwell does a great job of using this "theory" to bring the story of Sandra Bland full circle.