Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms

Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms

3.25 of 5 stars 3.25  ·  rating details  ·  397 ratings  ·  105 reviews
An amazing journey through the thriving worlds of fantasy and gaming What could one man find if he embarked on a journey through fantasy world after fantasy world? In an enthralling blend of travelogue, pop culture analysis, and memoir, forty-year-old former D&D addict Ethan Gilsdorf crisscrosses America, the world, and other worlds--from Boston to New Zealand, and Pla...more
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Published by Lyons (first published 2009)
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David Sarkies
Being a committed roleplayer when I saw this book (on sale at a bankrupt Borders Books) I purchased it and put it near the top of my reading list. I was a little disappointed though because even though it is a study of fantasy and gaming culture, it was quite subjective for my tastes and there was a lot comment about the author's life, and to be quite honest, the author seemed to be a little stuck up himself.
While he is correct that in the 70's and 80's, when roleplaying began to take off, it...more
Kit
I didn't realize when I picked up this book that it would be, like Julie and Julia or The Year of Living Biblically, one of those "I gave myself a quest and wrote about it so that I could get a book published" books. In Gilsdorf's case, his quest is a mid-life-crisis fueled desire to find out if it's possible to go back to his geeky roots without being a geek. Or something like that. Unfortunately, although his story of growing up with a disabled mother could be very powerful if followed to its...more
Sarah
Apr 01, 2010 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone who is a gamer, was a gamer, knows a gamer, and loves a gamer
Shelves: non-fiction
4.1.10:
Now that I've finished the book, I have to say that I'm disappointed. Gilsdorf doesn't end the book the way I would hope a book about fantasy and questing would end, with a winner and a resolution. But that's the entire point. Real life is murky; it has shades of grey that can't be resolved. There isn't a winner and there isn't a looser - maybe Spike said it best, "Life isn't bliss. Life is just this; it's living." For me, the ending I hoped for was a hope that I can find that ending for...more
Gerhardt Himmelmann
Reading this one on paper!

----

Well, this was downright weird. I thought I would be reading a journalistic exploration of fantasy and gaming subcultures, but Gilsdorf ventures way beyond this into what reads like not only armchair psychoanalysis, but armchair self-psychoanalysis. Throughout the book, he vacillates both on the idea of participation in these subcultures as escapism, and on the harmfulness of that escapism.

The author's coming to terms with his late mother's disability and death cer...more
D.G. Chichester
I think if you have never picked up a controller, rolled a 20 sided die, or busted on a LARPer, this will be a revelation on the order of Tom Cruise walking around wide eyed and nervously aroused in Eyes Wide Shut. For most folks I know well or even semi-well, it feels like familiar and well tread ground. The author spends a lot of time inserting himself into the story, trying to understand his younger self's interest in fantasy through the eyes and experiences of those he meets who still indulg...more
Abraham
Ethan Gilsdorf was heavy into Dungeons and Dragons as a teen, during the late seventies and early eighties. In his senior year of high school he discovered girls -- or rather one discovered him -- and so he set down his multi-colored dice and turned his back on Nerd-dom and Geekery.

But, a few years into his forties, he has an epiphany: hey, I should look back into D&D and other geeky stuff, then make a book about it! So he did and this is what came out of it all. The reader gets to follow a...more
Mark
I'm wondering if I came to this book with the wrong expectations... my first instinct is to write a pithy/snarky blurb along the lines of "Watch THE GUILD, read some classic KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE... and you'll get more enjoyment than you would reading this book."

Why the negative reaction to what is, admittedly, a well-written series of glimpses into some seldom-seen corners of the fantasy gaming universe? The author encounters some interesting people and does a good job of talking about th...more
David Brawley
Ethan is a gaming geek and a fantasy freak. He had set aside geeky things for a long time, but has been called back, and he has to decide whether to answer the call or not. This is a self-conscious journey as he tries to come to grips with his inner geek. From the battlefields of Pennsic to the spectacular vistas of Azaroth, to a small town in Wisconsin and on to Middle-Earth and New Zealand, Ethan's journey spans this world and several others. He encounters numerous well adjusted individuals wh...more
Cymberleah Dawne
I very rarely get over halfway through a book and not want to finish. Normally I know after the first few chapters if I want to keep going. This book suckered me in with the pathos of growing up with a broken mother, and I liked the concept of revisiting nerdy persuits after giving them up. What I did not like was the consistent navel-gazing and morose pondering that the author worried that he wad turning into one of "those people" every time he enjoyed one of the subjects of his chapter.
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Raequel Solomon
well the good things about this book is that he got to travel all over the country and the world to persue and examine his geekiness and others. i liked how he talked to people from old school tabletop gamers to SCAdians and con-goers. i did appeal to the commentary on his childhood and adolescence dealing with both his mother's traumatic brain injury and the effect it had on his life and his own search for identity and purpose as an adult. it did satisfy the armchair cultural anthropologist in...more
Matt
There’s a moment when the author hesitates before he opens up a box he finds in his parents’ house. A box containing all of his D&D books, maps and dice. A moment, twenty years after they had been stowed away, in which he reflects whether he wants to reopen the obsession of living in fantasy worlds.

I totally get it. I don’t know why, but I fell for that too. The thought that the nerd loves of our teenage years had to be packed tightly and discreetly away so that we could begin living adult l...more
Shedrick Pittman-Hassett
Those of us who populate the “fantasy” end of the pop-culture spectrum are used to being relegated to the fringe. We’re geeks, freaks, weirdos, possibly satanic nuts with a predilection for exploring sewers with plastic swords or spending far too much money and time on polyhedral dice or video game subscriptions. “Playing D&D” (Dungeons & Dragons for the uninitiated) is often the punchline of jokes concerning whether or not a person is a complete spaz or not. The stereotypical gamer/fant...more
Ann Rufo
When I was little my older brother tried to get me to play Dungeons and Dragons but I was a young pacifist and always ran away from any fights, so he stopped trying. So I didn't really grow up playing RPGs, and I don't like online games, but I do like fantasy books, and I do have a soft spot for geeks (hello boyfriend!). I picked this up as research before going to GenCon last year, and mostly enjoyed that inherent relate-ability that all unpopular, awkward kids can feel with this writer, even i...more
Stefan
I hate giving bad ratings. Basically, I prevent most of it, by evaluating the stuff I want to read very carefully before I start, but in this case, I obviously failed. But let me explain..

The author tells his story about being a very active D&D player in his childhood, escaping his difficult home life. Years later, he tries to explore geek subculture by traveling around and writing about it in this very book.

Now, it's not a bad book. Some parts are better than others, some are quiet nice act...more
Chris Aylott
As a teenager, Ethan Gilsdorf used D&D to escape from a difficult home life. Now in his early forties, he has spent the last few years exploring fantasy subcultures, trying to learn what its participants get out of their shared weirdness.

He doesn't come up with anything more profound than previous writers -- this book shares a lot of Gerard Jones' message that the kids are all right, and that Killing Monsters is good for you. Nothing new there.

What I did like was his portraits of various p...more
Gregory
This was a really fun read. I also really identified with the author, as our relationship with RPGs seems almost identical: it defined my life from age 12-17 and then was completely abandoned after that. But like the author since I've been in my 30s I've become increasingly curious about gaming and secretly kind of want to start playing again. As Gilsdorf points out, so much of it has crept into acceptable mainstream discussion. The Lord of the Rings movies definitely should take some of the cre...more
Sarah
I can't help but think of a few friends as I read this adult book. I mean, really, what makes someone talk like a medieval knight on a Saturday night, roll dice, and play make-believe? What makes someone play Lord of the Rings Online for weeks on end? Gilsdorf tries to answer these questions. He grew up playing Dungeons and Dragons and does a great job explaining how his mom's aneurysm drove him into escaping reality. Now as a thirty-something-year-old, he involves himself in role-playing games...more
Angela Mondragon
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Andrew Brozyna
In Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks Ethan Gilsdorf takes on the role of fantasy anthropologist, studying the various tribes of geeks and gamers lurking on the edges of "normal" civilization. A pop culture and travel writer, Gilsdorf journeyed across the U.S. and Europe to meet Tolkien Society members, D&D developers and players, live-action role players, Society of Creative Anachronism citizens, World of Warcraft gamers, costumed convention goers, Kiwi LOTR tour guides, and a French dude buil...more
Kayla Rose
I started reading this book with all the enthusiasm of a little kid on a shopping spree in a candy store. Literally. I devoured the first several chapters, and it accompanied me everywhere - to class, to the meeting of the Role Players Guild (of which I'm president), to the ER when the stomach flu hit me with all of the fury of Deathwing.

Then there was a point where it lost me, long before I actually gave up halfway through the chapter about World of Warcraft. As Gilsdorf's experiences with geek...more
Kyle Nicholas
I really enjoyed this book. Gilsdorf went through some tough things in his adolescence (don't we all?) He reached out to make friends and formed bonds with a few fellow "outcasts" in a way to get through those tough times and wound up becoming a major fantasy geek. I think this book really set out to demonstrate that, though the "popular" culture wants to deride escapists such as these geeks, there's really nothing wrong with it. After all, in one way or another, we are all "escapists" in some f...more
Garnett
The author had a brutal childhood, so he has a very hard time getting away from the role-playing game as 'escapism' trope. I liked his anecdotes, but there was a bit too much second rate sociology mixed in. At the end of the book he did emphasize rpg as a constructive process, which really gets lost, I think, in describing the phenomena.

I thought he got away from the 'role-playing' in rpg sometimes, especially by going on and on about Tolkien. He could have adhered better to that theme.

Pretty mu...more
Christopher
I spent a fair amount of this book trying to see who I could recognize among the author's geek sources. This is what I get living in the same town.

Gilsdorf hits a lot of the fandom sub-cultures, mainly in the medieval fantasy realm in an attempt to decide whether he was right to abandon his high-school D&D-playing self or if he will forever be trapped in a fantasy adolescence. No decision on that, because his hypotheses are based on some majorly false assumptions. He sees some of the assumpt...more
Matt Schillinger
Ethan Gilsdorf provides a compelling journey though many facets of fantasy and fan subcultures, in an effort to better understand his inner geek. His journey is sometimes thoughtful, other times joyful, and occasionally heartbreaking. Ethan provides a broad look at geek/fan culture through many different aspects . He offers enough depth to expose readers to a world they may be unfamilar with. The end result is better understanding fantasy/fan cultures, which will enable readers do away with simp...more
Pastor2112
In his early teenage years Ethan gamed with his fellow geek friends without regard for what others thought of his obsession. However, as he entered his late teens, he abandoned gaming in order to be "cool". As a forty-something, Ethan returns to his gaming roots in order to rediscover the magic again. He treks to Tolkien's home, spends time with LARPers, RPGers, and medieval battle reenactments. In the end, he makes peace with his past. Why should only sports and music fans be allowed to obsess...more
Tarryn
Author (and local Somerville resident) Gilsdorf takes an ambitious journey through the realms of geekdom, uncovering the hidden worlds of RPGS, LARPS, MMOGs, Harry Potter tribute bands, and die-hard Lord of the Rings lovers. As someone who is endlessly fascinated by odd subcultures / cults, I found much of Gilsdorf's front-line reporting from fantasy conventions and weekend long live action roleplaying games highly entertaining. My only criticism comes from the author's personal hang-ups with hi...more
Anne
This was an interesting, if somewhat wandering, exploration of the different fantasy escape experiences and what, if any, value comes from them. The author's own perspective is clearly acknowledged: he's very conflicted about his "geek" past and doesn't quite know what to make of fantasy and it's possible role in his life now, so he heads out to explore geekdom in all it's varieties, from LARP to SCA to conventions such as Lake Geneva and Dragon*Con.

Ultimately, I think his perspectives are very...more
sara frances
Interesting enough but the errors about WoW drove me crazy. Human hunters? WTF!
Neil
Gilsdorf's book grew on me. It's the story of how, in middle age, he returned to his teenage love of D & D. He re-immersed himself in various fantasy worlds: RPGs, LARPs, Cons, Online Gaming, New Zealand LOTR tours, SCA, and so on. At first I thought he was just going to beat to death the stereotypes about people pursuing fantasy for nothing but escapism, but by the end of the book, I think he actually had learned that people pursue these kinds of activities for all kinds of reasons.

This bo...more
Gerald
Sep 16, 2009 Gerald rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone who is into fantasy and/or gaming
This is an excellent book, enjoyable for someone who is a geek (like myself), but approachable by someone who has little to no familiarity with geek culture. The author strikes a good balance in tone, as he's never overly reverent of geekdom, but also he doesn't fall into being condescending.

Overall, I'd recommend this to anyone who has ever asked the question, "So what's this WoW/D&D/fantasy/convention stuff about anyway?" This book has the answers for you.

Best of luck to Ethan on the book...more
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Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms (Hardcover)
Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms (Paperback)
Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms (Kindle Edition)
Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms (ebook)
Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms (ebook)

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Ethan Gilsdorf is the author of the travel memoir / pop culture investigation Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms.

After playing Dungeons & Dragons religiously in the 1970s and 1980s, Ethan Gilsdorf went on to become a poet, teacher, critic and journalist. In the U.S. and in Paris, he’s worked as a...more
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