A book review by Rachel McKinney


I was pessimistic about this book. I've read other books written about geeky guys from a girl's perspective, to find out that it was all written from a "Sex in the City" type of perspective, one that I genuinely dislike... such as "Confessions of a Part-Time Sorceress" (which was written by a mallrat chick apparently to get new interest from new demographics for Wizards of the Coast, but not actually by someone who understands or enjoys WHY to play DnD... but back to the current book.

I was so pleasantly surprised. i <3 geeks - The Official Handbook by Carrie Tucker would be a FANTASTIC way to introduce someone to geek culture. Focusing on 6 different specialties, after a brief section on who and what geeks are, it's written a little like a dating guide, but becomes an actual resource on geek culture.

For example, "The Manga and Anime Geeks" section defines the difference between "shonen" and "shojo" storylines, but also gives really excellent insightful reccomendations for new anime watchers. She does the same for Comic Book and Graphic novel Geeks (don't you love her already for that distinction?), Sports Geeks, Video Game Geeks, Film and Television Geeks, and Science Fiction and Fantasy Geeks. Tucker freely admits that there are more type of geeks, and that all these may overlap, but that she wanted to educate outsiders about the culture.

Another great thing about this book, is that she says numerous times that you should not necessarily take up an interest just because some guy likes it... but that it's important to understand and try new things.

With geek and literary cred like "contributing writer to Anthem and Filter magazines" a background in marketing for Warner Brothers, a boyfriend who works for a video game company, and a kickass blog at her website www.carriejotucker.com you can see that she understands the geek culture from both perspectives.

Personally, I appreciate a book that isn't sexist against men, in that you can tell she genuinely enjoys the men she knows as people, not as a quick way to a diamond ring and security. She's trying to get the reader to understand a culture, a mindset, and her appreciation for the men out there that have actual thoughts and feelings, and are trying to be the good guys.

It's a funny book, and worth a read.