Bowling Alone: Revised and Updated

The Collapse and Revival of American Community

By: Robert D. Putnam

Narrated by: Arthur Morey

Length: 18 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's Summary

Once we bowled in leagues, usually after work - but no longer. This seemingly small phenomenon symbolizes a significant social change that Robert Putnam has identified in this brilliant volume, which The Economist hailed as "a prodigious achievement".

Drawing on vast new data that reveal Americans' changing behavior, Putnam shows how we have become increasingly disconnected from one another and how social structures - whether they be PTA, church, or political parties - have disintegrated. Until the publication of this groundbreaking work, no one had so deftly diagnosed the harm that these broken bonds have wreaked on our physical and civic health, nor had anyone exalted their fundamental power in creating a society that is happy, healthy, and safe.

Like defining works from the past, such as The Lonely Crowd and The Affluent Society, and like the works of C. Wright Mills and Betty Friedan, Putnam's Bowling Alone has identified a central crisis at the heart of our society and suggests what we can do.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2000 Robert D. Putnam. All rights reserved. (P)2016 Simon & Schuster

Long Long book

I listened to this book which seemed to go on for months. When the narrator is going over facts and stats endless it is just hard to grasp everything.

The whole book boils down to we are no longer a social society in any way. Bowling used to be part of the fabric of each and every community. You went bowling to see friends each week, to make new friends and business contacts. Now everyone just goes online or text.

The author throws out stats after stats showing of the decline in various organization over the last 50 years, and how this decline is an overview of the effects on bowling. I have been in bowling industry for 20 plus years now and there have been numerous factors for the collapse of league bowling. This book gave more incite into some of those factors that I wouldn't have thought about.

He says everything seven times

I was amazed how dry this was even for a policy book. It's probably the most important subject in the English-speaking world, and it manages to come out boring with how aggressive Putnam is with the facts. They just don't stop. Constant reiterations on how nobody goes to community things anymore and how democracy is mortally crippled and how severely Boomers, as a cohort, suck the big one.

I would like to see some updated analysis on the effects of the internet, it was naturally handled lightly given that this book came out when the Lone Gunmen were pirating cable.

If you want the long version, listen to this book and despair; If you want the short:

SPOILERS


People aren't involved in clubs, communities, and friendships at nearly the rate they were before the 60's, and Putnam
attributes like 90% of the cause to television and 10% to feminism.

Also, I can't remember a single thing he might have said about revival. All suggestions seemed naive and doomed to failure

Enlightening, but Dry

Expert analysis of the reduction of social capital, but very dry. Still a classic work.

Meh

Famous book but somewhat of a let down. A lot of questionably gathered/sourced/analyzed statistics and trying to raise more questions and doubts than really get at answers. Very repetitive structure too in how the book is written/presents.

Could be good, but data dumping ruins it.

Way too much data that is not necessary to get a point across. narrator a bit dull also.

amazing research and well-written

bowling alone tells the story of how America has lost its group nature. going through a hundred years of research and Analysis this book thoroughly explains some key reasons American society is in the decline.

Yawn

Bad riding, but only makes a few good points. I wish yes was updated, I tried to make it to apply to today’s society, but couldn’t. But even with that in mind, this isn’t very good storytelling or a very good argument.

We are stronger together

This is my second reading of a Robert Putnam book. As a 24 year old male who grew up with social media, video games, and cellphones I understand that we secretly want to bowl together again.

Pretty long book with lots of visuals

I recommend listening to audio at faster speed and then looking at visuals in book or provided pdf. Finished in 2 days while doing other tasks. Took a good majority of both days. This is primarily a research book, so be warned. Not a simple quaint story. Lots of useful studies and calls to action.

heartbreaking

Every negative trend he identified 20 years ago got much worse. Any positive signs turned out to be Pollyannaisms.