The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't by Robert I. Sutton, Ph.D.
Read by the Author; Audiobook, Hachette Audio, Abridged, 3 hours; Available online at Amazon.com.

I may as well admit up front that my primary reason for wanting to listen to The No Asshole Rule is the fabulous title. How could I resist a book that recognizes the presence of some of the less than wonderful people in the workplace while using such colorful language to describe them? It is too fun!

The author actually makes a case for "assholism" that is rather clinical in its approach. He offers assessments for identifying assholes in the work environment and even offers queries to assist one in self-identification as an asshole. The author even provides and defines a range for the kind of asshole one might actually be. This range begins with the "Temporary Asshole," and goes all the way through to the extreme "Certified Asshole."

The author is not afraid to name names either. He offers examples of his own ventures into "temporary Assholeness," as well as his experiences with prominent business people and associates that he diagnoses as "Certified Assholes" based on an array of behavioral factors.

The beauty of this book is that it allows the reader to laugh out loud at the horrific behaviors that most of us have been on the receiving end of at some point in our work lives. More importantly, it also offers ways in which to deal with assholes both at home and in the workplace. This reviewer would consider this book worth its weight in gold if even one "Certified Asshole" reads it, self-identifies, and, as a result, changes his/her ways of behaving.

I would recommend this book to any adult who has experienced dominant, manipulative, and nasty behavior from clients, colleagues, or management in his/her business or personal life. Whether "temporary" or "certified" the book affords the reader a chance to identify certain people for what and who they may be acting like or simply are: Assholes. It also has the added bonus of providing the reader with a good and well-deserved laugh along the way to those discoveries. I highly recommend this book to managers or those who have a direct impact on or role in recruiting and hiring. It's time more companies adopt the "No Asshole Rule!"

Note: If the title of this book or the content of this review makes you cringe due to the nature of the language, this book is not for you; the term asshole is used throughout with unabashed vigor.

About the Narration

I generally like it when the author of a book narrates the audio version of it. However, this is one time it may have served the author to have someone else do the reading. Sutton did a nice job of sounding conversational in tone, which is a nice touch; though he is a rather fast reader and this propensity caused him to slur words together and, at times, mispronounce words. This was not a terrible narration by any means. It's just that a few times I simply found myself having to think about what the reader meant to say based on the context. In short, he's an energetic reader with personal experience with his material, both of which add to the overall expression and effectiveness of the message.

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