Kindle Unlimited
Unlimited reading. Over 4 million titles. Learn more
Read for Free
OR
Kindle Price: $3.49

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Amazon book clubs early access
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Amazon book clubs early access

Join or create book clubs

Choose books together

Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Explore Amazon Book Clubs

Follow the author

Phil Dhingra
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

The Perfect Thread: How One Question Tapped into the Soul of MetaFilter Kindle Edition

by Phil Dhingra (Author), Jeremy Osborn (Foreword) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 15 ratings
See all formats and editions
How do people change? That is the question that Jeremy Osborn sought to answer when he created what is still one of MetaFilter's most popular threads. Users poured their hearts out, and the stories comprise some of the greatest, spontaneous Internet writing ever. Phil Dhingra latched onto this thread, and curated 56 of the best stories into this book. You will laugh, you will cry, but most importantly, you will begin to understand what it truly means to have a life-altering experience.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    98 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publication date
    June 16, 2009
  5. File size
    593 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  9. See all details
Next page
Add a debit or credit card to save time when you check out
Convenient and secure with 2 clicks. Add your card

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Phil Dhingra is a programmer, author, and public speaker. His writing and talks focus on topics of personal change. In March of 2012, he visited Hallmark Cards and delivered a keynote speech on self-improvement and app development. His second book Character & Chemistry is all about "finding the one". Phil also blogs under the nickname "Philosophistry".

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002DEMFKO
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Nuclear Elements (June 16, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 16, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 593 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 98 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 15 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Phil Dhingra

Phil Dhingra

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Philip has written three books on personal change:

Dear Hannah: 70 Methods I Used and Abused to Change Who I Am (2014) is a cautionary tale about self-improvement consisting of 82 letters written over 16 years describing every self-help book, pop psych article, and personal invention Philip used--or abused--to change who he is.

Character & Chemistry: The Only Two Questions You Need in Dating (2012) - This two-step formula will help you simplify the art of picking the right partner.

The Perfect Thread: How One Question Tapped into the Soul of MetaFilter (2009) - Philip selected over 50 stories from one of MetaFilter's most popular threads. The thread asked members the following question: "Can you point to a single experience in your life, as a child, which you can define as having contributed to the person you are today?"

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
15 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Anonymous
5.0 out of 5 stars As calm as moher's womb
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2015
Verified Purchase
There are a very few books that can connect you back to your soul.

I'm unable to place and point exactly where the thich of transition is.. but I'm sure, it is in many places in this book.

This makes you mellow to bring out the child and Godliness in the reader.

I recommend for every soul..
Helpful
 Report
Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting enough
Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2013
Verified Purchase
collection of short essays about -- you guessed it! -- life altering experiences. ...interesting enough, though most were a bit on the depressing side.
Helpful
 Report
ATXShopper
5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and thought provoking
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2012
Verified Purchase
"Life-Altering Experiences" brings a small slice of Internet sub-culture to paperback, but more so, it illustrates just how much variety there is in the human experience via a collection of short stories. Admittedly my favorite part about reading this book was considering what short story about my life I'd like to add to it. This book will put you in the mood for some introspection.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Lorry
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2015
Verified Purchase
Short, but interesting.
Helpful
 Report
Mike Miller
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2012
Verified Purchase
Stories from individuals who have had life altering experiences. Some of these experiences are pretty mundane, but the book does provide and interesting approach.
Helpful
 Report
Squidhelmet
5.0 out of 5 stars Uplifting and Humbling Real-Talk Stories!
Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2012
Phil Dhingra has hand-selected a set of amazing, real-life stories from a single thread on Metafilter where Jeremy Osborn (Jeremias) posed the question: "Can you point to a single experience in your life, as a child, which you can define as having contributed to the person you are today?". Although I was leery of this premise at first, imagining some kind of forum discussion, I was quickly drawn in by the thoughtful, honest, heart-breakingly human stories that emerged.

Life-Altering Experiences has that confessional quality of the website PostSecret or NPR's StoryCorps - little windows into people's worlds that are so vivid, but spare - leaving your imagination room to fill in a lot of the details. Like flipping through a photo album where each image tells a dynamic and unexpected story (not portraiture here, but captured moments of tension and release).

This is a quick read and each story leaves you with that satisfied feeling you get when you have a good conversation with someone - where you revealed something about yourself that makes you distinctly human - that moment when you see the person behind the personality.

The set of stories is well-curated by Dhingra, delicately edited for readability and all articles were run past the original authors of the posts. They're loosely categorized into groupings that highlight a small detail between the stories and the book looked great on my eReader. It is well worth the cost, although full disclosure: I received a free copy from the author to read and review - after the first few pages, could not put it down and read the whole thing!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Jamie L.
3.0 out of 5 stars a quick read
Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2014
Verified Purchase
This was a quick read. I really expected more over the top stories based on what I've seen online recently.
Helpful
 Report
MeganGiller
5.0 out of 5 stars Great, engaging read!
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2012
Phil Dhingra's book makes me want to immediately log on to MetaFilter and answer Jeremy Osborn's question about "a single experience in your life, as a child...[that] contributed to the person you are today." Dhingra has done us all a favor by gathering the honest stories posted on MetaFilter over the course of several years. He has thoughtfully divided the stories into short, readable chapters on different topics, which draws out the themes across all sorts of intense human experiences and emotions.

From the first account, I was struck by the candor of these anonymous storytellers. It might be that anonymity is what garnered such bare snapshots into people's lives, but regardless, they are moving, and they also catch a specific moment of time on the Internet (as Osborn says in the foreword, a similar question might be deleted off MetaFilter now).

I was gifted the book on Amazon from the author to read and review it, but I had a hard time putting my iPad down. It's rare to have such a collection of people talking about life and death without some sort of agenda. I particularly liked the stories of how people discovered their passions (unsurprisingly for MetaFilter, reading, writing, music, computers) and their private pivotal experiences. Well done!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Report an issue

Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report