NJ.com: Author Henry Alford discusses his new novel

I think people’s reluctance to talk at parties happens because we are just not a culture that understands that the point of going to a gathering is to talk to people you don’t know.
Read this article @ NJ.com.

Also read about the book in the New York Times: nytimes.com.
"Would It Kill You To Stop Doing That?" amuses as it informs, but Alford's book lacks focus.