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Let's Talk cover art

Let's Talk

By: Nihal Arthanayake
Narrated by: Nihal Arthanayake
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Summary

How do you talk to someone who doesn't want to talk to you?

What happens in the brain when we're having a good conversation?

What have smartphones done to how we connect?

Conversations are broken. And while effective dialogue is supposed to lead to greater fulfilment in our personal and professional lives, all the scientific evidence points towards us sharing fewer interactions than previous generations. From ever decreasing face-to-face meetings to echo chambers online, we no longer have the necessary tools to talk to each other.

Nihal Arthanayake is bucking this trend. As the world becomes increasingly more fractured, he has built a platform of 1.2 million listeners a week on BBC Radio 5 Live who regard him as one of the best people of his generation at having public conversations. Guests from the world's biggest stars to leaders of inner-city gangs have lauded his seemingly innate ability to stimulate positive discussions without the need for confrontation. Now he wants to understand how he developed his skills, what it exactly means to have a 'great conversation' and, most importantly, how he can teach us to have better interactions in our everyday lives.

Let's Talk blends Nihal's experiences as an acclaimed interviewer with expert and celebrity opinion on the secrets and psychology behind successful communication. From tracing the evolution of dialogue to discovering what lights up in the brain when we're enjoying a good discussion, Nihal speaks to conversational authorities including Lorraine Kelly, former president of Ireland Mary McAleese, Professor Tanya Byron, internationally bestselling author Johann Hari, Matthew Syed, and many more, to find out why good conversation has eroded over time and how we can fix it.

Part how-to and part manifesto, Let's Talk is Nihal's accessible, anecdotal and invigorating toolkit to having better conversations with anyone, any time.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2022 Nihal Arthanayake (P)2022 Orion Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"A brilliant book on the art of conversation." (Matt Haig)

"A compulsory book for these divided times." (Sathnam Sanghera)  

"An intriguing exploration of the importance of a proper chinwag." (Sara Cox)

What listeners say about Let's Talk

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I expected better

I expected better narration from Nihal given his background as an RJ. In many places it just seems that he is rushing through it, some places it seems he is tired.
The content has its share of anecdotes, but could have been better, and the final result and learning.
I do not see myself as much of a changed person after finishing the book, probably because I was already of the opinion that open talks help. I was hoping the book would focus on how to improve on that talking and negotiating and influencing skill but it doesn't do much of that. it mainly emphasises on the need to talk.

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Great insight

Thought this would be a more technical insight into conversation but it is more an enlightenment of the author who has insight to look back and understand his success

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Let’s Talk, Let’s Listen

Absolute belter of a book!

So many key points EVERYONE can take away.

A must read!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Inspiring

Nihal pulls together a cast of experts from diverse fields and ages to create a compelling case for better conservations

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Everyone should read this book

This is the only book that I’ve ever read, that’s made me stop and think about my behaviour.
I constantly pick up my phone when my husband is talking up me and this book has made me stop doing it.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Would be a 5* if Nihal had a will & POA.

Enjoyable book & an eye opener to me about my social media use, I’ve since deleted Facebook & no longer sleep next to my phone because of it. Thank you Nihal!

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Not what I thought

Saw Nihal on Sunday Brunch, talking about his book. Have listened to 3 hours whilst travelling today and didn’t get the point of it, neither did I think it came across as described on the above show

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Skip this one

Clear narration but the content is just an opinion piece. I highly recommend skipping this one.

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Disappointingly more about history than practical examples

A lot of waffle at the beginning about history. Very different to what I thought this book was meant to be about- having difficult conversations. Yes there’s examples of it but be try far removed from practical tips in a lot of waffle and pre text.

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Not worth the time spent reading it

Having read many books on this topic I was looking forward to this. but it the lacked practical steps promised in the title. instead it was mostly the author talking about himself - so much so, he came across as very narcissistic. Everything was seen in relation to himself. Tedious.

I ended up skipping through his waffle to get to the academics being interviewed. Even then not really worth the effort as much of their insight was lost in him paraphrasing the gist. The interviewees are indeed interesting and from a wide array of place - the author is very pleased about this, and there's much talk of how clever he was to choose to interview them and how their insights illuminated his career.

In the end, I skipped so much of the book to get to the nuggets - as his smugness was wearing on me - it felt like a complete the skills of these interesting people. a shame. plus a waste of my own time reading the book. all in all, less, much less, than the sum of it's parts

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