The Power of Strangers - by Joe Keohane (Hardcover)
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<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>"In The Power of Strangers, journalist Joe Keohane takes us through an inquiry into our shared history, one that offers surprising and compelling insights into our own social and political moment. But if strangers seem to some to be the problem, history, data, and science show us that they are actually our solution. In fact, throughout human history, our address to the stranger, the foreigner, the marginalized, and the other has determined the fate and well-being of both nations and individuals. A raft of new science confirms that the more we open ourselves up to encounters with those we don't know, the healthier we are. Modern cities are vast clusters of strangers. Technology has driven many of us into silos of isolation. Through deep immersion with sociologists, psychologists, neuroscientists, theologians, philosophers, political scientists and historians, Keohane learns about how we're wired to sometimes fear, distrust, and even hate strangers; what happens to us--as individuals, groups, and as a culture--when we indulge those biases; and at the same time, he digs into a growing body of cutting-edge research on the surprising social and psychological benefits that come from talking to strangers; how even passing interactions with strangers can enhance empathy, happiness, and cognitive development, ease loneliness and isolation, and root us in the world, deepening our sense of belonging; how paradoxically, strangers can help us become more fully ourselves. Keohane explores the ways in which biology, culture, and history have defined us and our understanding of people we don't know"--<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><b><b>An entertaining, surprising, and ultimately inspiring look at what happens when we talk to strangers, and why it affects everything from our own health and well-being to the rise and fall of nations</b> in the tradition of Susan Cain's <i>Quiet</i> and Yuval Noah Harari's <i>Sapiens <p/></i>"This lively, searching work makes the case that welcoming 'others' isn't just the bedrock of civilization, it's the surest path to the best of what life has to offer."--Ayad Akhtar, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of <i>Homeland Elegies</i><br></b><br>In our cities, we stand in silence at the pharmacy and in check-out lines at the grocery store, distracted by our phones, barely acknowledging one another, even as rates of loneliness skyrocket. Online, we retreat into ideological silos reinforced by algorithms designed to serve us only familiar ideas and like-minded users. In our politics, we are increasingly consumed by a fear of people we've never met. But what if strangers--so often blamed for our most pressing political, social, and personal problems--are actually the solution? <p/>In <i>The Power of Strangers, </i> Joe Keohane sets out on a journey to discover what happens when we bridge the distance between us and people we don't know. He learns that while we're wired to sometimes fear, distrust, and even hate strangers, people and societies that have learned to connect with strangers benefit immensely. Digging into a growing body of cutting-edge research on the surprising social and psychological benefits that come from talking to strangers, Keohane finds that even passing interactions can enhance empathy, happiness, and cognitive development, ease loneliness and isolation, and root us in the world, deepening our sense of belonging. And all the while, Keohane gathers practical tips from experts on how to talk to strangers, and tries them out himself in the wild, to awkward, entertaining, and frequently poignant effect. <p/>Warm, witty, erudite, and profound, equal parts sweeping history and self-help journey, this deeply researched book will inspire readers to see everything--from major geopolitical shifts to trips to the corner store--in an entirely new light, showing them that talking to strangers isn't just a way to live; it's a way to survive.<p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br>"This is one of those remarkable books you may not realize you're going to love (or need) until you're well into it. <i>The Power of Strangers </i>is deeply and gamely researched, lucidly and engagingly written (as if by a pal), informative, thought-provoking, playful, useful, and possibly life-changing. What a great way to start the post-pandemic."<b>--Kurt Andersen, author of <i>Fantasyland </i>and <i>Evil Geniuses <br></i></b><br>"In a thrilling, immersive journey across time and continents, Keohane upends everything we thought we knew about the people we don't know."<b>--Will Storr, author of <i>The Science of Storytelling <br></i></b><br>"Joe Keohane has changed my life. The very thought of talking to strangers has always given me mild nausea and stress sweats. But after reading this book, I've been converted. <i>The Power of Strangers </i>is an important tool in rescuing our tribal, smartphone-obsessed world. If you see me on the street, please say hi, so we can discuss it."<b>--A. J. Jacobs, author of <i>Thanks a Thousand: A Gratitude Journey <p/></i></b>"Why do people feel so disconnected, divided, and alone? Could a simple fix lead to increased happiness, ingenuity, health, and attraction? In this perfect post-pandemic read, Joe Keohane answers these questions--illustrating via scientifically backed evidence and engaging real-life examples how talking to strangers can address many of the biggest problems facing our societies and ourselves, and how it is far easier than we think."<b>--Sarah J. Tracy, Ph.D., professor, The Hugh Downs School of Human Communication at Arizona State University</b> <p/>"Thank Zeus, human nature, and the brilliant Joe Keohane for <i>The Power of Strangers</i>, an illuminating, witty--and dare I say life-affirming--blend of psychology, anthropology, and lived human experience. I never knew, before now, why strangers are chattier at farmers markets than in supermarkets, or why the vital and broadly applicable craft of listening (and the gift of being listened to) feels so good. God knows this book is timely and necessary, in this struggling republic of ours. I not only love it, I'm grateful for it<i>."</i><b>--Paige Williams, staff writer for <i>The New Yorker</i> and author of <i>The Dinosaur Artist: Obsession, Science, and the Global Quest for Fossils</i></b><br><p/><br></br><p><b> About the Author </b></p></br></br><b>Joe Keohane</b> is a veteran journalist who has held high-level editing positions at <i>Medium, Esquire, Entrepreneur</i>, and <i>Hemispheres</i>. His writing--on everything from politics, to travel, to social science, business, and technology--has appeared in <i>New York</i> magazine, <i>The Boston Globe, The New Yorker, Wired, Boston</i> magazine, <i>The New Republic, </i> and several textbooks. An avid parallel parker and occasional working musician, he also won a prestigious Screenwriters Colony fellowship in 2017 for a comedy television pilot that remains, sadly, unproduced.
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