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.