Quiet - Susan Cain

Once upon a time, there was this person that I just happened to meet.  She was friends with one of my friends.  We hung out for a good portion of the night, and then B and I ended up staying the night at her house.  Because we couldn't drive.

Because we're responsible people.

Anyway, I had only known this girl for a few hours, and she gets up, walks to her bedroom and hands me this book.

Quiet:  The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain.

I was really surprised that someone who knew me for a very small amount of time could peg me for the introvert I believe myself to be, and while reading the book, proved to be true even further.

I took psychology in college; I tested on the introversion side in the 5 Big Personality Traits, but never really knew what that meant until this book, and how to handle situations that are normally incredibly stressful to an introvert.

The book explains that an introvert doesn't necessarily not like people, it doesn't mean that they're necessarily quiet, unlikeable, or any of the other negative connotations that normally come with the word "introvert."  Being an introvert solely means that maybe you like to hang out with a group of one or two people instead of ten, or that maybe you would prefer to stay at home and read one night instead of jumping out of your comfort zone and going to party all night long. 

It goes into talking about how introverts will sometimes practice extroversion, even while it is uncomfortable, because that is the social norm.  It talks about students at Harvard Business School, and how students are expected to participate endlessly in class, join every social group known to man, and then go out at nights with their fellow classmates.  It goes into the differences between Western and Eastern cultures.  It talks about successful introverts, and why the world would not be the same without them.  It speaks about how to raise children that are on the opposite side of the introversion-extroversion scale than you, and even how to disintegrate arguments in couples that are on opposite sides.

Mainly it talks about how being an introvert doesn't make you weird or unwanted or any other negative term, but that in fact, being an introvert can put you in a very highly desired position above others.

It was an incredibly good book, and I highly recommend it to anyone; especially if you are an introvert, or an extrovert trying to understand one.

Book Review: About Face: The Secrets of Emotionally Effective Advertising

Now, I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that this is the sort of book I read all the time. Yes, I am interested in advertising ( I am drawn to commercials, like, I may be the only person on the planet who doesn't fast forward through them when I've recorded a show, well, except for American Idol, but that's another story for another day), and yes, sales is now my career (Hello RSR role! yep that's me!), but this book would be helpful in any light. It teaches you facial cues, and how to grab someone's attention.

"ABOUT FACE: THE SECRETS OF EMOTIONALLY EFFECTIVE ADVERTISING reveals new keys to success, covering how modern ads can target emotions using data from eye tracking and facial coding to analyze consumer response. Ten rules for such emotionally effective strategies pinpoint techniques and powerful results from high-impact emotion-driven marketing."

- From Midwest Book Review

So usually while I skim the fiction section, I do occasionally put on the smart girl glasses and dork it out. I recommend this to anyone who is interested in marketing/advertising, or is thinking of opening a business or promoting a product. Or if you just like to read about 21st centry marketing. There is a lot of "well, duh" moments in the book, but I like how they back it up with examples to make it easy for us people who would much rather be reading the latest Candace Bushnell book to understand what is going on. Even if you want to just pretend that you're a smart kid, this is a good book to start that act!

Book Review: I Was Told There'd Be Cake

from contemporarylit.about.com"The back cover of I Was Told There'd Be Cake says that "Sloane Crosley can do no right." This is not quite true. Although these essays detail the many misadventures of Sloane, clearly she's done something right indeed in this witty and entertaining book.Sloane Crosley is a young New Yorker. She's heard every Ferris Bueller's Day Off joke (for a grand total of 3,567 times) about her name. She attended a Christian-based summer camp for eight years, despite being "one hundred percent Jewish," and once ended up with the part of Mary in the Christmas-in-July nativity play. She had an impressively complicated time moving to a new apartment in New York City. And she has a knack for making just about any experience into a funny story.I Was Told There'd Be Cake features fifteen essays ranging from childhood to present, some with coming-of-age themes, others about making transitions and embracing change, many about the ways in which we discover our own identities. The stories vary in length and can be read in any order; you can easily take a piece or two of Cake at a time or devour the whole thing in one sitting.
I Was Told There'd Be Cake fits cozily between self-reflective tales of quarter-life crisis, such as those in Generation What?, and highly sardonic works such as Laurie Notaro's. If you're a young urban professional, if you have been young at some point, perhaps recently, or if you simply enjoy snarky humor with a little reflection (and much truth), I Was Told There'd Be Cake is an excellent choice for your summer reading list.



laura james' review: i freakin loved this book. i don't know if it was because i could pretty much relate to whatever it was she was talking about (oregon trail, being a bridesmaid, baking for a group of friends), or just because i was pretty much laughing the whole time. i'm usually not one for non-fiction, but this was a great and fast read. she has a great sense of humor and pulls you in from the very first essay. i would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a non-serious read, or pretty much anyone who is old enough to remember the original oregon trail.