Ethan Gilsdorf a Boston-based author comes to Los Angeles this week, Thurs Nov
5, Skylight Books, to speak about my new book "FANTASY FREAKS AND
GAMING GEEKS: An Epic Quest for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and
Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms."

The book is a travel-memoir and cultural investigation that looks at the appeal
of fantasy and gaming. The book contains a chapter on the Society for Creative
Anachronism, and profiles a local SCA member Sir Gareth. There are also
chapters on Tolkien fandom, Lord of the Rings, D&D and other RPGs, online games
like World of Warcraft, Harry Potter, DragonCon,
and more.

The book has been reviewed favorably by the Boston Globe,
The Onion's AV Club, Wired.com,
and other publications and websites
Ethan Gilsdorf 
http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com


Thurs, Nov. 5
7:30 pm
Los Angeles, CA
Skylight Books
http://www.skylightbooks.com
1818 N. Vermont Ave.

As part of his West Coast book tour, Ethan Gilsdorf presents his travel memoir
/ pop culture narrative "FANTASY FREAKS AND GAMING GEEKS: An Epic Quest
for Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary
Realms." The book is an exploration and celebration of fantasy and gaming
subcultures. The events begin with a "geek trivia contest" with
prizes that tests the audience's knowledge of all things Tolkien, Harry Potter, Dungeons & Dragons and more. Gilsdorf will
then read an excerpt from "Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks," followed
by a Q&A and book signing. More info: http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com

+++

PRAISE AND REVIEWS:

>"For anyone who has ever spent time within imaginary realms, the book

will speak volumes. For those who have not, it will educate and
enlighten."
 –WIRED.COM

>"Imagine this: Lord of the Rings meets Jack

Kerouac's On The Road"--- National
Public Radio's "Around and About"

>"Gilsdorf is an engaging and personable guide. Like many who will pick

up his book, he’s got one foot squarely in the real world, the other in the
fantasy one. This is a journey well worth taking. " –BOOKLIST

“A breathless adventure/quest/memoir that is uniquely contemporary.”
—Andrei Codrescu, NPR commentator

“A vicarious peek into an escapist pastime."
–Kirkus Reviews

>"[A] fascinating memoir/travel/geek-world exploration." --- The Onion's A.V. Club

“Witty, downright funny, poignant, honest and ... well, wistful.”
—R. A. Salvatore, New York
Times bestselling author of The Dark Elf Trilogy

“Fun, quirky and fresh.”
—David Brin, winner of the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus Awards

“An orcs-and-all journey through geekdom.”
—Melissa Anelli, author of Harry, A History: The True
Story of a Boy Wizard, His Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon

“More fun than being a Dungeon Master to a group of high-level mages and
thieves.”
—A. J. Jacobs, author of The Know-It-All and The Year of
Living Biblically


+++++

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK:
Come commune with your inner fantasy fan or gaming geek with Ethan Gilsdorf,
author of the travel memoir / pop culture narrative "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" is travel-memoir exploration and
celebration of fantasy and gaming subcultures. As you know, online gaming,
Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings are huge and topical these days. The book is
an effort to understand the appeal of fantasy and gaming.

On a quest that begins in his own geeky teenage past and ends in our online
gaming future, former D&D addict Gilsdorf crisscrosses America, the world,
and other worlds—from Boston to Wisconsin, France to New
Zealand, and Planet Earth to Middle-earth to the realm of Aggramar. He asks
game-players and fantasy fans---old, young, male, female, able-bodied and disabled—what
attracts them to fantasy worlds, and for what
reasons. What he discovers is funny, poignant, and enlightening.


ABOUT ETHAN GILSDORF:
Ethan Gilsdorf is the author of 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, and journalist. In the U.S. and in
Paris, he’s worked as a freelance correspondent, guidebook writer, and film,
book and restaurant reviewer. Now based in Somerville, Massachusetts, he
publishes travel, arts, and pop culture stories regularly in the New York Times, Boston Globe, and Christian Science
Monitor,and has been published in other magazines and newspapers including National Geographic Traveler, Psychology
Today, and the Washington Post. His blog "Geek Pride" is seen
regularly on PsychologyToday.com and he has also been a guest on talk radio as a fantasy and escapism expert. He
does not own elf ears, but he has kept all his old D&D gear, and has been
known to host a Lord of the Rings party or two. Follow Ethan’s adventures at http://www.ethangilsdorf.com.

More information at http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com

Ethan Gilsdorf

 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
http://www.ethangilsdorf.com
http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com
617-718-7007

My book "FANTASY FREAKS AND GAMING GEEKS: An Epic Quest for Reality Among
Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms" is
now available from The Lyons Press/Globe Pequot Press.

* All-new website here: http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com/ *

* Blogging for Psychology Today -- "Geek Pride": https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/geek-pride *

* Read my blog: http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/ethanfreak-blog/ *

* INTRODUCTORY VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0knQcSAaws *

* Join the Facebook Fantasy Freaks and Gaming
Geeks Fan page! http://www.facebook.com/fantasyfreaksbook *

* Enter the Great Geek Giveaway contest! cool prizes! http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/greatgeekgiveaway/ *

* Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ethanfreak *
Ethan Gilsdorf

 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
http://www.ethangilsdorf.com
http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com
617-718-7007

My book "FANTASY FREAKS AND GAMING GEEKS: An Epic Quest for Reality Among
Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms" is
now available from The Lyons Press/Globe Pequot Press.

* All-new website here: http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com/ *

* Blogging for Psychology Today -- "Geek Pride": https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/geek-pride *

* Read my blog: http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/ethanfreak-blog/ *

* INTRODUCTORY VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0knQcSAaws *

* Join the Facebook Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks Fan page! http://www.facebook.com/fantasyfreaksbook *

* Enter the Great Geek Giveaway contest! cool prizes! http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/greatgeekgiveaway/ *

* Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ethanfreak *
Ethan Gilsdorf

 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
http://www.ethangilsdorf.com
http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com
617-718-7007

My book "FANTASY FREAKS AND GAMING GEEKS: An Epic Quest for Reality Among
Role Players, Online Gamers, and Other Dwellers of Imaginary Realms" is
now available from The Lyons Press/Globe Pequot Press.

* All-new website here: http://www.fantasyfreaksbook.com/ *

* Blogging for Psychology Today -- "Geek Pride": https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/geek-pride *

* Read my blog: http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/ethanfreak-blog/ *

* INTRODUCTORY VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0knQcSAaws *

* Join the Facebook Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks Fan page! http://www.facebook.com/fantasyfreaksbook *

* Enter the Great Geek Giveaway contest! cool prizes! http://www.ethangilsdorf.com/greatgeekgiveaway/ *

* Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ethanfreak *