You might already consider yourself a stellar conversationalist, but could you be even better? This book will help enrich your life, one conversation at a time.

'Reading TALK is like having a conversation with the world's best conversationalist' Angela Duckworth

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Conversation is at the heart of our relationships and decision-making - but the science behind our everyday interactions, and how to improve them, is little known.

In Talk, Harvard Professor Alison Wood Brooks provides fascinating insights into the power of effective communication. She gives you the tools that her MBA students say transform their lives, bringing together psychology, linguistics, sociology and neuroscience in her original framework:

T – Topics – including the surprising impact of preparing topics before a conversation
A – Asking – why we need to do more (and why we do less than we think)
L – Levity – how to find the fun in conversations with anyone
K – Kindness – how to be a better listener and not simply pretend to be one!

Through her own original research, Brooks shows readers how small changes in how we communicate can make a big difference to our relationships, our careers and our lives.

"It’s hard to overstate the importance of conversation in life and at work. In this brilliantly-crafted new book, author Alison Wood Brooks explains when and why conversations breakdown, drag on, or otherwise disappoint, and when and why they flow effortlessly to build mutual understanding. TALK will be a welcome gift for anyone who wants to have better, more effective, and more rewarding conversations with friends, family, colleagues, and even strangers." - Novartis Professor of Leadership, Harvard Business School; Author of FT Business Book of the Year Right Kind of Wrong

"Appropriately enough, reading TALK is like having a conversation with the world's best conversationalist. Alison Wood Brooks brings to life the science of conversation, in which she is a world expert, with the utmost warmth, empathy, and joy. The perfect combination of stories and science, maxims and examples, this book has raised my game as a conversationalist. I'm recommending it to everyone I know" - #1 NYT Bestselling author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

"TALK is a rigorously researched, evidence-based book by a leader in the field. On top of this, it's a joy to read — a killer combination." - NYT Bestselling author of Expecting Better, Cribsheet, The Family Firm, and The Unexpected

"Alison Wood Brooks has crafted a thing of beauty; a thorough look at how we communicate, why we communicate, and how to unlock the power of communication with this fantastic book TALK. We will all be quietly planning talk topics, asking more questions, bringing joy, and finding empathy towards one another after reading this book. There are too many ah-ha moments to count in this book so just do yourself a favor and start reading it!" - Grammy-Nominated & Tony Award-Winning creator of Freestyle Love Supreme

"TALK is, by far, the most useful book I’ve read in a long time. Just two chapters into it, I found myself having more enjoyable and meaningful conversations with everyone from receptionists to the person I live with. The writing is witty and wise, and each chapter is crammed with fascinating stories and astonishing research discoveries. Get this book!" - Harvard Business School professor emerita and coauthor of Retiring: Creating a Life that Works for You

"For many, one of the lost arts in modern life is conversation. Alison Wood Brooks’ wonderful new book TALK: The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves has the solution. Read this book, and your life will improve." - Harvard Professor and #1 New York Times bestselling author

"In TALK, Alison Wood Brooks, one of behavioral science’s superstars, teaches us how to have more productive, engaging and humane conversations. Witty, science-driven and filled with compelling insights and stories, TALK is a modern classic." - author of Chatter

"Builds a convincing case for practicing and better understanding the elements that shape good conversation. Lucid and pragmatic, this unlocks some of the mysteries of human communication." - Publishers Weekly