Review: When Strangers Meet
It’s Warren Ellis‘s fault that I read this, and I thank him for it. Kio Stark has a great gift for seeking out and describing the small moments that interacting with strangers can bring you. There are moments of fright, enlightenment, joy, melancholy, and usually mixtures of all those. She writes remarkably beautifully about them. Ellis brought them to me by mentioning her brilliant newsletter in his brilliant newsletter.
When Strangers Meet is Stark’s manifesto claiming that people should seek these moments out. The whole thing is brought to us by the TED folks, no relation. She makes a fine argument and I’m predisposed to believe her. Seeking out exchanges with strangers one of the things I’ve begun doing lately, and I agree with all the benefits she claims. But the best arguments for her position are her vignettes.
Recommended, as is her newsletter.