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A review by carolinethilde
Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know by Malcolm Gladwell
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
4.0
This book made me remember that I don’t actually know anything at all. Malcolm Gladwell’s ability to dissect cultural phenomena and show us the guts is successful once again, in Talking to Strangers.
I never realized how many small assessments we make of people we’ve only just met! Gladwell proves that humans are judgmental by nature. Most of what we assume is incorrect. He examines what went wrong in that traffic stop that was an innocent Sandra Bland’s untimely end and how it speaks to a broader social context. How do we make snap judgments about the people we’ve met and why? Are we too trusting? Too wary? Gladwell covers it all and reveals some hard truths about how we should be treating the people around us.
Pro tip: don’t read this book in the park if you don’t want random strangers to come up to you and strike up weird conversations!! I learned that the hard way.
I never realized how many small assessments we make of people we’ve only just met! Gladwell proves that humans are judgmental by nature. Most of what we assume is incorrect. He examines what went wrong in that traffic stop that was an innocent Sandra Bland’s untimely end and how it speaks to a broader social context. How do we make snap judgments about the people we’ve met and why? Are we too trusting? Too wary? Gladwell covers it all and reveals some hard truths about how we should be treating the people around us.
Pro tip: don’t read this book in the park if you don’t want random strangers to come up to you and strike up weird conversations!! I learned that the hard way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, and Gaslighting
There is analytical discussion on attempts at suicide, racial profiling, and pedophilic behavior.