book data
1,484 ratings,
3.71
average rating, 356 reviews
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published
September 1st 2005
by Regan Books
binding
Leather Bound, 464 pages
isbn
0060554738
(isbn13: 9780060554736)
description
Are you just another AFC ("average frustrated chump") trying to meet an HB ("hot babe")? How would you like to "full-close"...more
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| The Deeper Message of the Book | 7 | 89 | 06/20/2008 06:22PM |
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avg 3.71
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Impossible to put down. This is a fascinating tale of a guy with marginal skills with the ladies (despite fame), who sets out on a life changing mission to master picking up women. I dare you to try and not get hooked in the first few pages. The characters are philanderers, gigolos, wannabes, braggarts, and every dysfunctional category in between.
Their quest is obvious, and thrust in your face; to hook up with as many beautiful women as possible. Strauss becomes prolific at the soci...more
Their quest is obvious, and thrust in your face; to hook up with as many beautiful women as possible. Strauss becomes prolific at the soci...more
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Read in October, 2007
I have a habit of thinking I understand guys. I have three younger brothers and no sisters, and I've read a lot of comic books. I was telling Chance, Evan and Adriel about teratomas on Friday and they were really grossed out; I assume that guys don't tiptoe around me out of deference to my delicacy. But I think that assumption is a mistake.
Back when I used to read Rolling Stone, I used to read Neil Strauss. He seemed (see Chuck Closterman) more enamored with the concept of stardo...more
Back when I used to read Rolling Stone, I used to read Neil Strauss. He seemed (see Chuck Closterman) more enamored with the concept of stardo...more
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(10 people liked it)
5 comments
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
those (men) who chase phantoms instead of dreams.
I know I'm taking a risk by even acknowledging its existence and my familiarity with its contents. It may not be interpreted kindly that an Orthodox rabbi (in training) reads *this* widely. But this book tells a story of ethical tension that is, hands down, the most powerful treatise on morals and group dynamics I have ever read. Period.
I found it at once the modern man's sefer mussar of choice, and the endgame of every single Reality TV show every made. But it is not for everyone.
...more
I found it at once the modern man's sefer mussar of choice, and the endgame of every single Reality TV show every made. But it is not for everyone.
...more
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Read in September, 2007
Although well-written, this book is appalling and sad. Ultimately this peek into "the secret society of pickup artists" is not as enlightening as the cover art, book jacket and title would like us to think. And I can't help but feel a writerly disappointment in Neil Strauss for having embraced something that brazenly revels in its own misogyny.
Don't be fooled; Mystery--who is a classic example of what happens when one is deprived of love and validation as a child-- tries to...more
Don't be fooled; Mystery--who is a classic example of what happens when one is deprived of love and validation as a child-- tries to...more
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Read in November, 2008
recommended to Jenny by:
Pete's book club
Oh wow, hard to say if I'm horrified or fascinated or what. I guess some of both. Good thing I'm reading this for book club cuz I can't wait to discuss. I can't believe this is for real. And then what I'm wondering is, what are girls supposed to do? Just sit there and look pretty? Hmm. But here's some quotes I liked:
"In life, people tend to wait for good things to come to them. And by waiting, they miss out. Usually, what you wish for doesn't fall in your lap; it falls ...more
"In life, people tend to wait for good things to come to them. And by waiting, they miss out. Usually, what you wish for doesn't fall in your lap; it falls ...more
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Read in August, 2008
recommended to Debbie by:
Elizabeth
This is a surprisingly good book that I would never have read if it hadn't been strongly recommended by a friend who was reading it and was totally fascinated by the gender politics. The author, Neil Strauss, has ghost written some celebrity memoirs, and writes for Rolling Stone and the New York Times. In other words, this man can write. The thing that makes this book so interesting is the author's running monologue about gender, specifically masculinity and the ways that boys and men are taugh...more
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Read in April, 2008
I spent the first 100 pages utterly confused. Was the point of The Game to meet lots of girls, get a girlfriend, or just have lots of sex? One wannabe-PUA crows about losing his virginity - it's a horrible, painful experience which he can't wait to end. But afterwards, he says that he's excited because this will take the pressure off, and allow him to approach more women, presumably to have even more painful, awful sex with women he doesn't like.
After a few hundred pages I realised tha...more
After a few hundred pages I realised tha...more
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Read in January, 2007
For a book that targets (and caters very well to) young males, "The Game" truly belongs in the hands of a twenty-something cynic.
Parts of the story read like a self-help book, which was very funny in and of itself. But what I found to be interesting (on some level, perhaps) was that Strauss has taken his version of "rags-to-riches" and turned it into colorful, sexual, hopeful prose that reveals a protagonist traveling down a highway of mayhem to a destination of confus...more
Parts of the story read like a self-help book, which was very funny in and of itself. But what I found to be interesting (on some level, perhaps) was that Strauss has taken his version of "rags-to-riches" and turned it into colorful, sexual, hopeful prose that reveals a protagonist traveling down a highway of mayhem to a destination of confus...more
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Read in April, 2009
I learned that I am what, in pick up artist ("PUA") parlance, is called a "natural." I've never had problems meeting women. So I didn't pick this book up for its instructional content. Rather, I was intrigued into reading this book by curiosity. I wanted to see how my life experience stacked up with my preconceived notion of a true PUA. I envisioned a PUA as being a highly confident, suave, cool operator that women swoon over without being able to control themselves. I ...more
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Read in February, 2009
A fast-paced, very well-penned, fun, intriguing story of social psychology, nobodies becoming superstars, emotional self-destruction, and the birth of the seduction industry. Neil studies the art of the pickup from ground zero, starting under the wing of the famous Mystery, and then hopping from guru to guru, building a name for himself as a master of women while simultaneously reflecting on how absurd, magical, and ultimately destructive the whole thing is.
Oddly enough, this book's...more
Oddly enough, this book's...more
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Read in January, 2007
This book was fucking terrible. I'm ashamed to have read it.
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Read in January, 2008
With a subtitle like “Penetrating The Secret Society of Pickup Artists,” I was expecting more of a how-to or an expose. Luckily I was wrong.
Strauss’ The Game is a fascinating look at an American subculture’s moment in time. It is a captivating story that rivals Hell’s Angels and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test in its engrossing tale of American hubris, endeavor, success, and failure.
The book itself is beautiful, packaged like a bible with gold embossing and a red ri...more
Strauss’ The Game is a fascinating look at an American subculture’s moment in time. It is a captivating story that rivals Hell’s Angels and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test in its engrossing tale of American hubris, endeavor, success, and failure.
The book itself is beautiful, packaged like a bible with gold embossing and a red ri...more
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Read in August, 2007
This book is primarily about this dude Mystery, who is the host of a VH1 show The Pickup Artist, where he shows really socially inept guys how to pick up girls. This is the FUNNIEST BOOK in the history of mankind. If you are a computer geek of any kind, you will die laughing while reading this book.
Mystery is a young computer nerd living with his parents in Toronto. He spends all day online posting to message boards about how he is awesome picking up girls, but when he's not posti...more
Mystery is a young computer nerd living with his parents in Toronto. He spends all day online posting to message boards about how he is awesome picking up girls, but when he's not posti...more
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A very interesting read. I couldn't believe that there are people who actually dedicate a significant portion of their lives to the art of picking up women. I have never read anything like this before.
It shows that a little self confidence and some clever (however manipulative) maneuvering can go a long way. The writer Neil Strauss and his story about how he turned from nerd to stud is interesting.
There were many parts that shocked me. Mostly the parts that involved b...more
It shows that a little self confidence and some clever (however manipulative) maneuvering can go a long way. The writer Neil Strauss and his story about how he turned from nerd to stud is interesting.
There were many parts that shocked me. Mostly the parts that involved b...more
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This was an easy and mindless train/tube read, but I had to keep the book flat on my lap to hide the title after I saw a few women rolling their eyes. Since I've moved to London I've noticed that I'm not the only one who likes to take a sneak peek at what others are reading and then give them a meaningful look.
So, here’s Neil Strauss’s story as he claims. He had written books and articles about rock stars and porn stars. He had access to a lot of backstage parties and glamorous ...more
So, here’s Neil Strauss’s story as he claims. He had written books and articles about rock stars and porn stars. He had access to a lot of backstage parties and glamorous ...more
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hmmm dangerous territory writing about this book. I mean basically what I learned was things I sort of knew and learned the hard way about meeting girls. There are some really funny things and some really annoying things to the pickup artist lifestyle. The long and short of it being know who you are and embrace that fully.There are tricks and gimmicks but anything worth having comes from be yourself . Definitely entertaining, but a bit overkill for me personally, would of been happy with this bo...more
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Read in March, 2009
There are some very valid reasons to skim through this controversial, pornographic, poorly written, and often obnoxious anthropological tour of the "seduction community," a network of men who use social psychology and hypnosis to pick up women. First, women should know that this exists and defend themselves accordingly -- if you don't want to wade through a whole book on the subject, here's a synopsis:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction_c...
It's fascinating a...more
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seduction_c...
It's fascinating a...more
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Read in March, 2009
A couple friends of mine recommended this book. It's easy reading, mind-candy really, and I finished it in a few hours. However, I don't think it had too much depth.
It's about an online forum group, about how to pickup women, that gained popularity to the point that its prominent members started offering expensive seminars and lectures. The seminars became so popular that some of them banded together to buy a house, share expenses, and operate their businesses out of it. The book...more
It's about an online forum group, about how to pickup women, that gained popularity to the point that its prominent members started offering expensive seminars and lectures. The seminars became so popular that some of them banded together to buy a house, share expenses, and operate their businesses out of it. The book...more
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Read in January, 2009
Haha… so I think a lot of people have the wrong idea about this book. I was talking with a friend who was really interested in reading it when I was done, and she thought that it was a book about HOW TO PICK UP WOMEN. Which it is, but only tangentially. It's really more of a narrative about someone who joins the pick-up community, a subculture of men who swap ideas and stories about the best ways to get women into their beds. Along the way, he drops some of the things that they talk about doi...more
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Read in September, 2007
This book is supposed to help men who have never gained the attention of someone they liked or appreciated, realize that they can actually get the attention of anyone. After that, its up to the guy to stop using the lines, and start using words that represent them. Why use fake lines to impress a girl, when you can be yourself and meet someone who may in fact be more like you?
A man should value himself first before trying to attract women he thinks may be of value to him. Men need to...more
A man should value himself first before trying to attract women he thinks may be of value to him. Men need to...more
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