Quiet

“Don't think of introversion as something that needs to be cured.”

I didn't realize that the world had it out for introverts but maybe it's just my problem for missing it?

Based on this book's gross generalization I'm neither an introvert nor an extrovert. While I am an introvert at my core, my personality is also sprinkled with characteristics that are attributed solely to extroversion. Apparently I'm the Divergent in Cain's world which is divided in these two factions: introverts and extroverts.

I found little use to the book. Barely any insightful information is provided. Like I said, it was overall just a gross generalization. Cain's view of the matter is seriously biased.

I am all for protecting and cherishing introversion, after all, I am mostly introverted. And I have had that held against me on occasions. I felt wronged, of course. Nonetheless, I was quite taken aback by the villainization of extroverts. Cain portrays introverts as these perpetually misunderstood geniuses, who need to be handled like delicate flowers, who would fix all the world's problems if only they would be allowed to take over. Because introverts are such good folks. And extroverts are these loud, stupid, intimidating assholes who never listen to the voice of reason, who only care about themselves and always try to manipulate everyone for their own gain, therefore they are those who will bring on the Apocalypse. Even when she makes some feeble attempts to give extroversion some credit it always comes out as a insult that's masked a compliment.

The truth is, throughout my lifetime, I've faced a lot of assholes, and they were from both camps. The extroverted ones used loud, aggressive methods of intimidation while the introverted ones used insidious passive-aggressive tactics. None was better than the other. So it's really not about where you are on the introversion-extroversion scale is what you end up doing with it and this point seems to completely escape Cain's view.

This book was meant to stroke my introverted ego, but it failed miserably. To me, it felt like a big pity party while I was expecting a fairly objective opinion based on scientific findings about introversion and extroversion.

I'm not saying that her criticism of today's western society is invalid. And that she doesn't have a point when she talks about how awful corporations and the educational system are. Or about how they brake spirits and suppress valid ideas just based on the delivery. Loud, arrogant, impulsive, stupid people are usually the ones who end up in charge everywhere nowadays and this is causing so many issue for everyone. But it's not a simple matter of introverts vs. extroverts.

The only few sections that were not completely tainted by her personal convictions, did provide some useful information and helped me confirm the knowledge of my own personality. But nothing was revolutionary, I had an intuitive understanding of most of those ideas.

Needless to say I was very disappointed by this book. It's of little value from a scientific point of view. For me it was mostly Cain's way of dealing with her own challenges of being an introvert and frankly she comes out as a somewhat bitter, passive-aggressive individual.

Otherwise, the narration was quite pleasant and there are quite a few good quotes and ideas, too bad they were tainted with the author's defensive attitude.

As you can probably guess from the title: this book deals with the subject of introversion and extroversion within humans. It's written from the point of view of an introvert, and focuses more on them than extroverts. Extroverts are usually brought up more as a comparison than anything. Ergo this book would probably appeal more to fellow introverts than any extroverts reading this. There is still a fair bit of information on extroversion in here however so don't let that discourage you too much!


The author is a self-described introvert and a former Wall Street lawyer named Susan Cain. Susan Cain is an American and so almost all of the book is set in, and directed towards, America and Americans. While some of it might not be relevant to you if you're not American (A/N: I'm not!), such as if you're from a mostly introverted country (an example she uses is China I believe) most of the book is still useful to you. Just keep in mind that she is using a mostly extroverted country as a background.

The book covers a lot of varying topics such as how introversion affects both your personal life, your career, and your relationships. There is a veritable wealth of knowledge in this book, Cain sure has done her research into this topic. It is well presented, with each chapter focusing on a different aspect of your life and how introversion can affect it.

She also gives examples of introverts and extroverts she has met throughout her life to help illustrate how certain obstacles in our life can be overcome or used to our advantage. I say obstacles here in reference to her common statement in the book that we are living in a world where extroversion is the ideal. In a world of extroverts it can be difficult to fit in, or to fake your way into being a pseudo-extrovert (more on that inside the book).

She describes introverts as a necessary part of society, indeed that society could not function without both introverts and extroverts. That the existence of the two in perfect harmony is the natural state of human society.

The book is useful to pretty much anyone, whether you're a parent trying to understand your introverted child, or an introvert trying to better understand yourself and how to achieve success in whatever you want and/or happiness.

The book is great in that it doesn't describe either introversion or extroversion in negative terms, but rather explains that they're both highly useful in their own ways. Neither one is better over the other. Cain was very non-judgemental when writing Quiet.

As an introvert I found the book to be very relatable at times. The title was especially appealing to me. The book wasn't perfect, but it was close enough. The book sometimes seems to read as fiction, to me anyway. Possibly it is the author's style of writing which gives that impression. I was also a bit turned off because of all the Americanism, but the author is American so I can't be too disappointed by that. I almost rated it a 5/5, it was a close call but ultimately decided on 4/5 mostly for the reasons I just listed.