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

★★★★★

This book is both a source of fascinating information and an engagingly easy-to-read text. The author deftly ties together research results, personal experience, and anecdotes gathered from interview subjects.

In the introduction, on page 15, the author writes that, at the very least, she hopes the book will offer a "newfound sense of entitlement to be yourself." Indeed, that is exactly what I got.

At the core of the book is the presentation of the "extrovert ideal" - the idea that in American society, extroversion is praised and valued. This book serves to inform us that introverts, too, have a legitimate and important place in society.

Reading this book on the heels of Elaine Aron's The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You, I was especially pleased whenever the author made mention of Elaine Aron and her work studying the "highly sensitive" personality trait. I honestly feel that these two books together have actually helped me to better understand myself. I really think this book has empowered me to more boldly adopt a more extroverted persona when necessary, but also to cut myself some more slack when indulging my introverted nature.

I was even quite surprised to learn that, despite answering "true" to literally every single statement in the introversion self-test, I actually deal with conflict in close personal relationships in a very extroverted way!

I was particularly interested in the chapter on Asian-Americans. As an Asian-American myself, and a follower of Asian-American media outlets, I have read countless articles about Asian-Americans being the model minority, excelling in school but not in the workplace, being stereotyped as bookish, quiet, and unassuming. I was excited to read the chapter, but also wary... A Caucasian woman writing about Asian-Americans in the mainstream media? What if she got it wrong? Well, I do know that some people have bristled at this chapter because of the broad sweeping generalizations made to Asian cultures that ultimately served to reinforce the model minority myth. In the end, I guess I gave the chapter a pass because, I confess, the anecdotes described in this chapter did indeed echo my own personal experiences.

I also appreciated the chapter on how to raise an introverted child. Mostly it said to just be aware of your child's temperament, allow them to be themselves, and support them in their endeavors, even if they don't fit in with the extroverted ideal that is so highly regarded in school-aged children. Maybe some more specific information would have been nice, but this isn't a parenting book, so really, this book gave just enough information to get started, if you think your child is an introvert.

The author comfortingly closes the book with a conclusion that urges the reader, on page 264, to "put yourself in the right lighting. For some it's a Broadway spotlight; for others, a lamplit desk."