The Art of Conversation (Abridged): A Guided Tour of a Neglected Pleasure Audiobook

" About midway, I kind of gave up on caring because it was kind of pretentious. But it made some good points. I skimmed through the last half. "

" Conversation advice for 14-year-olds. "

" I preferred the art of marriage, but this was interesting too. Alot of good advice but I'm not sure how much I'll recall. "

" For someone who wants us to talk to each other more, Blyth certainly doesn't seem to have a high opinion of her interlocutors. In rafting and kayaking there's something called "positive point": you don't point to the big rock, but the direction you want your co-rafters to go. The same would be useful here. Blyth's commonplace book of conversational anecdotes, both ancient and modern, keeps confusing rules, exceptions and bad examples. While it's fun to have a list of cruel snappy comebacks or caricature of people you should hate, it's hardly the sort of thing I think of when I think "art" and "neglected pleasure." She would do better off to leave her hang-wringing over Facebook and Twitter and think about why, exactly, she wants to talk to those around her. "

" Reading this book felt like reading a very rough first draft rather than a published copy. The writing style may work in a real-life conversation, but flounders as a book. It's verbose and difficult to follow as she bounces from one idea to another with little actual guidance. "

" Fantastic how-to on the intricacies of conversation with tons of historical and celebrity facts and quotes mixed throughout. Excellent bibliography at the end, too. Only complaint is that it was extremely British, so a lot of the slang and references she made went over my head. "

" Excellent read. Highly suggested for anyone who wishes to (re)learn the value of solid conversation in any form. "

" Some good advice, seems to fall between stools a little bit. Not sure if it was meant to be amusing or thought provoking, manages to be a little of both. Definitely worth reading, contains some tips for managing conversations better and how to deal with the various types of bore are a treat! "

" I gave up about 50 pages in. Unreadable. "

" Though I like what Blyth says and how well she says it, her 'tour' gets a bit lengthy and redundant. "

" Interesting premise, poor execution. Practically unreadable! "

" Did not hold my interest. "

" Not as good as the cover might lead you to believe. "

" Educational but hard to remember anything I read. "

" The first book I ever returned to the store... after 30 pages! Reads too much like a US Weekly article. "

" She knows what she's talking about. Problem is people don't listen anymore :) "

" Excellent read. Highly suggested for anyone who wishes to (re)learn the value of solid conversation in any form. "

" Though I like what Blyth says and how well she says it, her 'tour' gets a bit lengthy and redundant. "

" Not as good as the cover might lead you to believe. "

" This was an interesting idea and the author had many interesting tidbits included, but her combination of annoying wit on display and boring recitation of themes made for boring going. I did not dislike it, but would not recommend it. Luckily it was a fast read through. "

" I'm still not sure whether to take this book seriously or not. "

" About midway, I kind of gave up on caring because it was kind of pretentious. But it made some good points. I skimmed through the last half. "

" The first book I ever returned to the store... after 30 pages! Reads too much like a US Weekly article. "

" Fantastic how-to on the intricacies of conversation with tons of historical and celebrity facts and quotes mixed throughout. Excellent bibliography at the end, too. Only complaint is that it was extremely British, so a lot of the slang and references she made went over my head. "

" Terrible. Couldn't get past page 30. Completely disorganized writing style, clunky sentences, one random non-sequiter after another. And why the hell is the word "reconfigured" on quotation marks on page 14? "

" Blyth is a nimble writer who explores the lost and dying art of conversation -- what makes it work, what doesn't. A quick, interesting read that will make you think about your next conversation. "