blackandbookish's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars
Straight forward and easy to digest. This book gave language for concepts I knew instinctively. I listened on audio book and would have preferred a more engaging narrator, but overall I would recommend for someone building or growing a small community.
Straight forward and easy to digest. This book gave language for concepts I knew instinctively. I listened on audio book and would have preferred a more engaging narrator, but overall I would recommend for someone building or growing a small community.
davidcuen's review
2.0
This is a book that could have been a few blog posts but ended up being repetitive and really short. The author is clearly passionate about building real life communities and tries to develop a framework to organise things that are natural steps in social gatherings. That said, it is very light, fully of personal examples and not something that will stay with me.
roxymaybe's review
3.0
Some interesting points, but the insistence that the reader is going to apply this knowledge to be a (better) community leader feels like a PowerPoint presentation at an assistant managers' conference.
libra17's review
5.0
The Art of Community is really a how-to type of book. The author begins by introducing the topic in the context of his own experience with it, then goes on to break down each of the seven principles of healthy communities in great detail. He also provides multiple examples for each principle.
This was a great book. It wasn't quite the kind of book I thought it would be (based on the title, I had thought it the type of book whose primary goal was to disseminate information about a given topic, probably from historical perspective), but as it was it was very educational and I ended up enjoying it a lot. Additionally, because The Art of Community included a lot of information about how to build community in existing organizational structures, it gave me a lot to think about in terms my work and how to approach it in a better manner. In that way, The Art of Community was a very valuable read, in addition to being educational and enjoyable.
This was a great book. It wasn't quite the kind of book I thought it would be (based on the title, I had thought it the type of book whose primary goal was to disseminate information about a given topic, probably from historical perspective), but as it was it was very educational and I ended up enjoying it a lot. Additionally, because The Art of Community included a lot of information about how to build community in existing organizational structures, it gave me a lot to think about in terms my work and how to approach it in a better manner. In that way, The Art of Community was a very valuable read, in addition to being educational and enjoyable.