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5.43k reviews for:
Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
Malcolm Gladwell
3.83 AVERAGE
5.43k reviews for:
Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know
Malcolm Gladwell
3.83 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Very interesting book, listened to the audio version. Great mix of psychology behind interactions and how we can't always judge ourselves when dealing with others and recent cases to see psycho I ogy and mixed signals in context. Ultimately, without some common agreement of expecting the best from people we are also at a loss.
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
informative
reflective
I received a lot of insight into theories on how the human mind works but there were also a few things I didn't agree with.
Also, gliding past the Israeli involvement in the police training and not questioning it was very strange to me. I wanted to think I feel this way cause it's really relevant nowadays to the US involvement in Israel's genocide of Palestine, but the book was published in 2019. It just left a sour taste...
Also, the sexual assault part of the book sounded a bit like excusing the rapists cause they were intoxicated or the systems that protected pedophiles because they were seen as good people. Like...excuse me?
I understand the idea that we tend to default to truth but if you have vulnerable lives under your care and information that they might have been put at risk, you go above and beyond to protect them, not the alleged abuser. Cause what happens in most cases? It turns out they were actually an abuser.
Also, when he got to Chanel's case: I read her book, that girl was unconscious, there is no excuse to be made. Also, not adding how the rapist only got a couple months of prison cause the judge was in his family's pocket. Prior to reading this, I didn't know about the other case but I should assume there are more details missing if he picked and chose what would fit the purpose of his book with Chanel's case.
So, interesting book idea. However, with some points, I feel like the writer didn't paint the whole picture as it would not have helped the case he was trying to make or it completely excused sexual assault and the systems put in place for protecting children.
Also, too much grace given to the police for my taste.
Also, gliding past the Israeli involvement in the police training and not questioning it was very strange to me. I wanted to think I feel this way cause it's really relevant nowadays to the US involvement in Israel's genocide of Palestine, but the book was published in 2019. It just left a sour taste...
Also, the sexual assault part of the book sounded a bit like excusing the rapists cause they were intoxicated or the systems that protected pedophiles because they were seen as good people. Like...excuse me?
I understand the idea that we tend to default to truth but if you have vulnerable lives under your care and information that they might have been put at risk, you go above and beyond to protect them, not the alleged abuser. Cause what happens in most cases? It turns out they were actually an abuser.
Also, when he got to Chanel's case: I read her book, that girl was unconscious, there is no excuse to be made. Also, not adding how the rapist only got a couple months of prison cause the judge was in his family's pocket. Prior to reading this, I didn't know about the other case but I should assume there are more details missing if he picked and chose what would fit the purpose of his book with Chanel's case.
So, interesting book idea. However, with some points, I feel like the writer didn't paint the whole picture as it would not have helped the case he was trying to make or it completely excused sexual assault and the systems put in place for protecting children.
Also, too much grace given to the police for my taste.
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence
The pop-psych element of this book that explores how we relate to each other was great. I love that stuff, and Gladwell's writing never disappoints. But I think he was seriously reaching in his application of these principles to recent high-profile cases, verging on offensive a few times. The Sandra Bland discussion was absolutely fascinating, with its exploration of modern policing, but even with all that background, I still attribute the ultimate outcome to a certain "bigoted asshole factor" that reaches beyond breakdowns in interpersonal communication.
informative
reflective