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Charisma
Charisma
May 5, 2025 6:49 PM

Author:Francine Stock,Francine Stock

Charisma

Francine Stock sets out to explore the elusive quality that is charisma.

Can charisma – variously combining charm, magic and power – ever really be pinned down?

Moving from St Paul’s coining of the word in the first century of the Christian Era right up to the present day, charisma continues to be a powerful influence, not always for the good, in the fields of politics, banking, terrorism, theatre and film.

Along the way, Francine takes in early medieval mystics such as Margery Kempe and Joan of Arc; the Elizabethan belief in the so-called "Royal Touch" and its different manifestations today; the powerful healing claims of Franz Mesmer; and radical charismatic leaders from Garibaldi to Osama Bin Laden. She explores the power and appeal of charisma with stars such as Sarah Bernhardt; self-made businessmen such as W.K.Kellogg, Henry Ford and Steve Jobs; totalitarian leaders including Hitler, and new forms of political extremism such as the so-called Islamic State; civil rights leaders, Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama; and the volatile world of contemporary banking.

There is a continuing hunger for charisma; can this gift of grace be turned to a shared advantage?

Produced by Beaty Rubens

©2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd (P)2018 BBC Worldwide Ltd

Reviews

An unbelievably inspiring book

—— Peter Wohlleben, author of The Hidden Life of Trees

Compassionate, compelling and often tear-jerking... Anyone who has a heart will be reduced to tears, if not to vegetarianism, by Masson's argument

—— Daily Mail

An entertaining survey of the main characteristics of farmed animals and a sobering account of how these have been ignored

—— Guardian

Presents information and anecdotes without ever preaching

—— Independent on Sunday

In this latest leg of Jeffrey Moussaieff's journey through the animal kingdoms, this perceptive writer peels back our prejudices to reveal the depth of feeling and thought in animals' minds and the leap we must make to be worthy of understanding them. Eye-opening, warm, thoroughly engaging

—— Ingrid Newkirk, President of PETA

Wrenching, yet vitally important... At last a voice for the domestic animals who need it most. While every attention is paid to wild animals and to pets, farm animals are systematically ignored because the fact that we kill and eat these sentient beings is almost unbearable to acknowledge. Yet if that is what we are doing, we must acknowledge it. We must understand our actions. This powerful, excellent book is not for cowards

—— Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, author of The Hidden Lives of Dogs

A harrowing insight into the psyche of everyday German citizens ... Huber's book is extremely well researched ... By drawing on the thoughts, movements and mental state of the diarists, he is able to provide a compelling insight into the minds of everyday Nazi citizens.

—— Jacob Farr , The Scotsman

A grimly compelling study of the psychology of fanaticism ... The book hints at a deep truth about war at its dirtiest.

—— The Economist

Bleak, arresting ... A sobering study of a dark period of Europe's history.

—— Matt Elton and Ellie Cawthorne , BBC History Magazine

This book perfectly walks the reader through the past, present, and future of trust as we know it. Rachel Botsman's expertise on this topic is unmatched. It's an absolute must-read for business leaders and everyday consumers alike

—— Nick Shapiro, Global Head of Trust & Risk Management, Airbnb and former Deputy CIA Deputy Chief of Staff

Botsman rightly challenges us in this new era to ask the compelling questions about who, why and how we trust. Highly recommended

—— Tim Costello, CEO World Vision Australia

In Rachel Botsman's capable hands, the concept of 'trust' - and its changing shape over the ages - becomes clear and accessible. Utterly compelling

—— Dr Simon Longstaff, Executive Director of the Ethics Centre

Sharp, penetrating, and obsessively researched, this book will open your eyes to a phenomenon that is as important as it is impossible to ignore.

—— Leigh Gallagher, Senior Editor, Fortune

An absorbing, story-filled narrative that will leave readers with a new understanding of the phenomenon that drives life in our digital age

—— Kirkus Reviews

A sharp, thoughtful, sometimes-surprising account of how we build trust with strangers now.

—— Kirkus Reviews

In a time when people are doubting experts, suspicious of the media, and losing faith in government and business, Rachel Botsman is here with a lucid analysis of what it takes to build and rebuild trust. Trust me: this is a book you need to read

—— Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of GIVE AND TAKE, ORIGINALS, and OPTION B with Sheryl Sandberg

Rachel Botsman's eye-opening, timely book delves into the unfolding crisis of trust spreading throughout the world. She brilliantly describes how the established trust framework is undergoing a radical transformation as digital technologies take root in every facet of our lives. Read this book and you'll be ready for a revolution in trust that rewrites the rules of human interaction

—— Marc Benioff, Chairman & CEO, Salesforce

Book of the Month

—— October , Financial Times

This is a book that every adult reader should pick up to gain some perspective on how reliant we have become on technology, and how we can afford to approach it with more skepticism

—— The Literary Journal Review

Botsman has found a rich theme here and a fascinating way of interpreting the technological change

—— Wall Street Journal

Top 10 Business Bestseller

—— 800 CEO Read

Top 5 Tech Book of the Year

—— WIRED

In her witty new book technology author and TED celebrity Rachel Botsman tells us why it did not work. Who Can You Trust? reveals some deep truths

—— Spectator

Botsman guides the reader on an enjoyable accessible, but cautiously skeptical, tour through this hugely transformative, but barely recognized, shift in our sometimes-irrational approach to trust

—— Winnipeg Free Press

As Botsman drives deeper and darker, she sheds more and more light, her book [is] rapidly becoming brilliant

—— Dialogue
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