Can social life become more civil? Are children learning to care about themselves as well as other people? In a world that says it values relationship, do we understand what's involved in meeting human need so people can flourish in these relationships? This book offers a perspective on making human connections more stable and satisfying and claims that the exchange depends on learning how to read and interpret what's going on during social interaction. Social literacy is the ability and willingness to read what's going on during our encounters with others so that we remain true to ourselves (authentic) and yet remain well connected to other people (integrated).