Quiet - by Susan Cain

About the Book

Like "You Just Don't Understand" or "Stumbling on Happiness, Quiet" is a paradigm-shifting book that shows how dramatically our culture has come to misunderstand and undervalue introverts, and gives introverts the tools to better understand themselves and take full advantage of their strengths.

Book Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Experience the book that started the Quiet Movement

"A smart, lively book about the value of silence and solitude."--Daniel Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY People - O: The Oprah Magazine - Christian Science Monitor - Inc. - Library Journal - Kirkus Reviews

At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts--Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak--that we owe many of the great contributions to society.

In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts--from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves.

Review Quotes

People Top 10 Book of 2012
O, The Oprah Magazine 10 Favorite Books of 2012
Christian Science Monitor Best Books of 2012
2012 Goodreads Choice Award, Best Nonfiction
Fast Company #1 Business Book of 2012
Inc Magazine Best Books for Entrepreneurs in 2012
Library Journal Best Books of 2012
Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2012

An important book that should embolden anyone who's ever been told, 'Speak up!'
--People

Cain offers a wealth of useful advice for teachers and parents of introverts...Quiet should interest anyone who cares about how people think, work, and get along, or wonders why the guy in the next cubicle acts that way. It should be required reading for introverts (or their parents) who could use a boost to their self-esteem.
--Fortune.com

Rich, intelligent...enlightening.
--Wall Street Journal

An intriguing and potentially life-altering examination of the human psyche that is sure to benefit both introverts and extroverts alike.
--Kirkus, Starred Review

Cain gives excellent portraits of a number of introverts and shatters misconceptions. Cain consistently holds the reader's interest by presenting individual profiles, looking at places dominated by extroverts (Harvard Business School) and introverts (a West Coast retreat center), and reporting on the latest studies. Her diligence, research, and passion for this important topic has richly paid off.
--Publishers Weekly

This book is a pleasure to read and will make introverts and extroverts alike think twice about the best ways to be themselves and interact with differing personality types.
--Library Journal

An intelligent and often surprising look at what makes us who we are.
--Booklist

In this well-written, unusually thoughtful book, Cain encourages solitude seekers to see themselves anew: not as wallflowers but as powerful forces to be reckoned with.
--Whole Living

Those who value a quiet, reflective life will feel a burden lifting from their shoulders as they read Susan Cain's eloquent and well documented paean to introversion--and will no longer feel guilty or inferior for having made the better choice!
--MIHALY CSIKSZENTMIHALYI, author of Flow and Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Management, Claremont Graduate University

Superbly researched, deeply insightful, and a fascinating read, Quiet is an indispensable resource for anyone who wants to understand the gifts of the introverted half of the population.
--GRETCHEN RUBIN, author of The Happiness Project

Quiet is a book of liberation from old ideas about the value of introverts. Cain's intelligence, respect for research, and vibrant prose put Quiet in an elite class with the best books from Malcolm Gladwell, Daniel Pink, and other masters of psychological non-fiction.
--TERESA AMABILE, Professor, Harvard Business School, and coauthor, The Progress Principle

As an introvert often called upon to behave like an extrovert, I found the information in this book revealing and helpful. Drawing on neuroscientific research and many case reports, Susan Cain explains the advantages and potentials of introversion and of being quiet in a noisy world.
--ANDREW WEIL, author of Healthy Aging and Spontaneous Happiness

Susan Cain has done a superb job of sifting through decades of complex research on introversion, extroversion, and sensitivity--this book will be a boon for the many highly sensitive people who are also introverts.
--ELAINE ARON, author of The Highly Sensitive Person

Quiet legitimizes and even celebrates the 'niche' that represents half the people in the world.
--GUY KAWASAKI, author of Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions

Susan Cain is the definer of a new and valuable paradigm. In this moving and original argument, she makes the case that we are losing immense reserves of talent and vision because of our culture's overvaluation of extroversion. A startling, important, and readable page-turner that will make quiet people see themselves in a whole new light.
--NAOMI WOLF, author of The Beauty Myth

Superb...A compelling reflection on how the Extrovert Ideal shapes our lives and why this is deeply unsettling. Based on meticulous research, it will open up a new and different conversation on how the personal is political and how we need to empower the legions of people who are disposed to be quiet, reflective, and sensitive.
--BRIAN R. LITTLE, PH.D., Distinguished Scholar, Department of Social and Developmental Psychology, Cambridge University

Quiet elevates the conversation about introverts in our outwardly-oriented society to new heights. I think that many introverts will discover that, even though they didn't know it, they have been waiting for this book all their lives.
--ADAM S. MCHUGH, author of Introverts in the Church

Gentle is powerful... Solitude is socially productive... These important counter-intuitive ideas are among the many reasons to take Quiet to a quiet corner and absorb its brilliant, thought-provoking message.
--ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Harvard Business School professor, author of Confidence and SuperCorp

Memo to all you glad-handing, back-slapping, brainstorming masters of the universe out there: Stop networking and talking for a minute and read this book. In Quiet, Susan Cain does an eloquent and powerful job of extolling the virtues of the listeners and the thinkers--the reflective introverts of the world who appreciate that hard problems demand careful thought and who understand that it's a good idea to know what you want to say before you open your mouth.
--BARRY SCHWARTZ, author of Practical Wisdom and The Paradox of Choice

"A smart, lively book about the value of silence and solitude that makes you want to shout from the rooftops. Quiet is an engaging and insightful look into the hearts and minds of those who change the world instead of tweeting about it."
--DANIEL GILBERT, professor of psychology, Harvard University, author of Stumbling on Happiness

About The Author

Named one of the top ten influencers in the world by LinkedIn, Susan Cain is a renowned speaker and the author of the award-winning books Quiet Power, Quiet Journal, and Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. Translated into more than forty languages, Quiet has appeared on many best of lists, spent more than seven years on the New York Times bestseller list, and was named the #1 best book of the year by Fast Company magazine, which also named Cain one of its Most Creative People in Business.