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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Patrick Lencioni

2002 · 228 pages · Narrative nonfiction

hopeful moodmoderate pacebalanced toneresolved and happy ending

How it reads

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is narrative nonfiction (business/philosophy, specifically), and its dominant mood is hopeful. Whatever it puts its people through, it believes things can get better. The pace is moderate — neither a page-turner nor a slow burn — so it holds up whether you read it in long sittings or short ones.

It's set in a big city setting, in the present day, told in the first person by a single narrator. Its central concerns are family. In weight it sits in the middle: substantial without being heavy going.

It stands alone, so there's nothing else you need to read first or after. The ending resolves happily. At 228 pages it's a quick read. It's well known, the kind of book most keen readers have heard of.

Pick it up if…

  • you're in the mood for something hopeful
  • you want a complete story in one book
  • you want to be sure it ends well

Maybe not if…

  • you need something melancholy or dark

All 15 dimensions

Author gender
male
Author experience
established
Setting: place
big city
Setting: time
contemporary
Mood / feeling
hopeful
Pace
moderate
Tone / weight
balanced
Length
short
Narrative style
first person, one narrator
Publication era
modern classic
Popularity
well known
Series vs standalone
standalone
Themes
family
Ending style
resolved and happy

What these mean: the 15 dimensions of a book.

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