I read this book on a recommendation and now have a lot of questions about their taste. This book came off as a basic level reading of a wide collection of individuals and cases throughout the modern era, without much actual thought. It seems to me that Gladwell has a hard time separating his own opinion from his narrative, and also doesn't consider other viewpoints or relative history at all. If all of the problems and issues of our world and daily life could be solved by just slowing down and taking time to understand each other then I believe we would have done it already.

I think this work ignores the greater framework of modern society, which is built from some historical and similar aspects that Gladwell references in the beginning of the book. Without proper context we can't begin to understand and communicate with other strangers. But then again, Gladwell never stopped to define what a stranger is.

Also, stating Sandra Bland committed suicide in her jail cell? Disagreeing with the victim of rape when she gives her statement, and pushing inflammatory questions onto the situation? I don't believe Gladwell paused to think about his own words and how they were be interpreted. If we should be working to try to understand one another, then why isn't he working to understand victims as much as he tried to understand those who hurt them?