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  • Every Body’s Talking: What We Say Without Words by Donna M. Jackson
  • Elizabeth Bush
Jackson, Donna M. Every Body’s Talking: What We Say Without Words; illus. by Donna M. Jackson with Carol Kinsey Goman. Twenty-First Century, 2014. 64p. illus. with photographs Library ed. ISBN 978-1-4677-0858-6 $30.60 E-book ed. ISBN 978-1-4677-1120-3 $22.95 R Gr. 5-9.

Children’s science writer Jackson offers a breezy but substantive introduction to unspoken communication, with particular attention to facial expression, body postures and positions, signs of lying, and cross-cultural differences. Picture-book trim size, wide leading, and generous font size may initially suggest a younger audience, but the vocabulary is appropriately challenging for middle-schoolers and beyond, while both illustrations and situations of teen communication are used to highlight various points. Moreover, Jackson never overstates her case, and she frequently cautions readers that context and individual quirks impact interpersonal transactions in ways that preclude applying these generalizations universally. The take-home messages, then, are admirably realistic: careful observation will make you a better interpreter of tacit communication, and practiced control over your own tells can increase your confidence in such uncomfortable situations as public speaking and meeting new people. Count on readers sharing this book with friends and postulating exactly who among their acquaintance “always does that.” Source notes, selected bibliography, glossary, and index are appended.

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