American Nerd : The Story of My People (Paperback)

from Othemts

The author sets out to write about the history, sociology, anthropology and psychology of the nerd confessing that he is taking "a serious approach to a subject usually treated lightly, which is a nerdy thing to do," (p. 11). Early on Nugent defines the nerd: I believe there are two main categori...

from TheAmpersand

A light, readable cultural history, meditation, and memoir on an infamous cultural type, "American Nerd" shouldn't be mistaken for a comprehensive study of the species. Still, Nugent is a likable writer and does a good enough job of tracing nerdiness along various historical, social, cultural, me...

from dmcolon

As I continue my reconnecting with my inner nerd, American Nerd provided an interesting stroll down memory lane. The book chronicles the history of nerdiness and the many pursuits and passions that makes one a nerd. Nugent does a good job of outlining the history of the term and shows how such li...

from mstrust

This is a surprisingly well-researched non-fiction that explores how certain things, like debate club, became associated with nerds, the origins of nerdy literary characters, the part that race plays and whether nerdiness is actually autism or Asperger's syndrome. Woven throughout, and especially...

from TooHotty

This book was interesting and entertaining enough, but pretty repetitive and often directionless. It talks about "nerd" culture and why it exists, including topics such as gaming, hipsters, athletics, machine-like rationality vs. emotionalism, empathy, autism... It's a lot in a short book, and it...