I Can Read You Like a Book

Having read a number of books about body language, most of which have lots of pictures and written analysis of 'frozen moments', I was pleasantly surprised when I read this book. Here is a different take on body language, an approach that cites many real-life examples, explaining the body language of various interactions step by step as they evolve, rather than offering the usual explanations of magazine poses. This difference, along with the 'real life' emphasis, might put a few people off. Personally I like it, and I have a large collection of similar books, most of which, in all honesty, merely state the obvious.At the beginning of the book the emphasis is on cultural differences in body expression, then the book moves on to discuss the classification of body language - as in illustrators, adaptors, regulators and barriers, giving great insight into the reasons for, and ways in which each class is used, and then you will find my favourite section, a section where well known public exchanges between various politicians and celebrities are discussed in micro detail. Finally, the author examines ways we might use our new knowledge, offering us the insight of experience rather than the usual speculation.All the situations are discussed in a way that enables you to feel and identify how and why the body language in question took place, which is, of course, more useful than the usual frozen moment without context. So, if you want a book about body language which REALLY leaves you feeling that you've learned something, this is probably the book for you!If, on the other hand, you are specifically looking for a book on body language in a business context, you might enjoy  The Silent Language of Leaders: How Body Language Can Help or Hurt How You Lead  which offers some up to date research. Again, it is hard to find anything striking among the books on body language because most of us will simply nod as we read each page and connect it to our experience. Also, the ability to use it ourselves is limited because our body language is largely an unconscious expression of who we are and what we feel, and thus working on who we are and our state of mind will have more impact on our body language than trying to apply various postures and facial expressions. 'I can read you like a book' takes you into the mind behind the body language, which might offer us more help when we choose to apply what we learn. The Silent Language of Leaders: How Body Language Can Help or Hurt How You Lead

Gives good tips on interpretation of non verbal language. Good book.

Before you delete this book off your to buy list based on my 3 star rating you should know that I am just not great at picturing things ... I am very visual. If you are able to picture things easily and can follow along with a description and translate it into images in your mind you will like this book. There are pictures to help but there aren't pictures for everything and you do have to use a mirror and try to imagine things a lot.For me, I tried really hard to use the photos and use a mirror to replicate what he was saying and figure things out but I think I am just confused and more judgmental thanks to reading this book. I am pretty sure I am misreading EVERYTHING now instead of just relying on my instinct which was probably more accurate than my confused image of what is what. :) Not really the fault of the book - it's a REALLY hard topic to put in writing I think!If this book was a video I would love it and would have given it 5 stars I bet. The way he broke it down is easy to understand and I think that it makes it easy to follow and put it all together too. He's shared plenty of real life stories and examples to help you see it in action. And it's simple and not too scientific. I have a lot of good things to say about this book ... just that I really wish it was a video so I could REALLY visualize what the body language looks like in each situation he described!

Love this author and his work. This is only one of many books from Greg Hartley that are must reads for anyone interested in learning about body language and human behavior. I thought I was a true crime junkie, when in fact I’m a body language and human behavior junkie. Wish I’d read this 30 years ago. Will definitely give as a gift to my grandson, along with other great books by Mr. Hartley and the rest of the “squad” on the Behavior Panel. Totally hooked. Great work.

I could not believe that the driver threw the package onto my porch from the truck. The book is good. I could not find where to report the driver so I had to do it here.