This book is about interpersonal communication & social interaction. It examines the platitudes, cliches, misused words, & phoney phrases devoid of real feeling & concern that people frequently use when they don’t know what else to say. Stories in the book, based on interviews with the sick, the disabled, caregivers, & other faced with tragedies such as homicide, illustrate that people’s best intentions often are off the mark because they are unaware of what they are really saying or doing.