The Art of Gathering

In writing The Art of Gathering, Parker did extensive research and conducted interviews with experts on creating, hosting, and improving events, meetings, and conferences, including several colleagues like Nora Abousteit and comedian Baratunde Thurston as well as organizations like the House of Genius. Yet the primary and most extensive source of information informing the book is Parker herself. The numerous anecdotes drawn from her personal life illustrate and support her argument about the best way to conduct gatherings, implying that she is a highly reputable and trustworthy authority on the topic.

In the Introduction Parker explicitly discusses her background, how and why she became interested in the topic of gatherings, and, by extension, how she came to write the book. A mixed-race woman, Parker was born to an Indian mother and an American father; or, as she puts it, she comes from a combination of “Indian cow worshipers in Varanasi” and “American cow slaughterers in South Dakota” (xi). Parker describes how this dynamic relationship was often contentious (ending in divorce), and she attributes her skill in understanding people and diversity to her early attempts to mediate between her parents.

Over time, Parker’s skills and experiences in this area have grown far beyond her family life. For instance, she spent time working to improve race relations at the University of Virginia via a group known as Sustained Dialogue, and she has worked with other major groups, including the World Economic Forum. Professionally speaking, Parker is an expert on gatherings, but she qualifies her experience by reflecting on her experiences and stating, “I come to gatherings not as a chef or an event planner, but as someone trained in group dialogue and conflict resolution” (x). This perspective has a twofold significance. First, it encapsulates Parker’s argument that gatherings do not succeed because of their menus or settings but because of their clearly pinpointed and supported purpose. Second, it implies that Parker is the right person to explain this approach, given that her own work with gatherings is focused on planning them precisely to fit their purposes.