For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards
Jen Hatmaker, 2015
Thomas Nelson Press
224 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780718031824
Summary
Best-selling author Jen Hatmaker is convinced life can be lovely and fun and courageous and kind.
She reveals with humor and style how Jesus’ embarrassing grace is the key to dealing with life's biggest challenge: people. The majority of our joys, struggles, thrills, and heartbreaks relate to people, beginning with ourselves and then the people we came from, married, birthed, live by, go to church with, don’t like, don’t understand, fear, compare ourselves to, and judge.
Jen knows how the squeeze of this life can make us competitive and judgmental, how we can lose love for others and then for ourselves. She reveals how to...
- Break free of guilt and shame by dismantling the unattainable Pinterest life.
- Learn to engage our culture’s controversial issues with a grace-first approach.
- Be liberated to love and release the burden of always being right.
- Identify the tools you already have to develop real-life, all-in, know-my-junk-but-love-me-anyway friendships.
- Escape our impossible standards for parenting and marriage by accepting the standard of “mostly good.”
- Laugh your butt off.
In this raucous ride to freedom for modern women, Jen Hatmaker bares the refreshing wisdom, wry humor, no-nonsense faith, liberating insight, and fearless honesty that have made her beloved by women worldwidea (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1973-74
• Where—state of Kansas, USA
• Education—Oklahoma Baptist University
• Currently—lives in Austin, Texas
Jen Hatmaker is a mom to five children, a pastor’s wife, sought-after speaker, best-selling author and star of the popular series My Big Family Renovation on HGTV.
She is best known for her books 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess (2012), Interrupted: When Jesus Wrecks Your Comfortable Christianity (2014), and For the Love: Fighting for Grace in a World of Impossible Standards (2015). (From the publisher.)
Visit the author's website.
Book Reviews
There is humor out there in the real world we live in, and Jen points it out. She doesn't sugar coat things, so don't dig into this book expecting it to be all hilarious. There are some jagged points in there too. Maybe it is different for everyone. It will all depend on you, and what you need to get out of her writing.
AnotherChanceRanch.net
There’s wisdom doled out in Jen’s humorous style and I think all women should read this. From beautiful thoughts for her kids, to the chapter on marriage, to encouraging women, friendship, social justice, the church and our calling as believers, this book will not only make you smile (and laugh out loud), but encourage you in so many ways.
Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
Also, conisder using these LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for For the Love:
1. Discuss one of the central quotations from Hatmaker's book: "Live long enough and it becomes clear that stuff is not the stuff of life. People are." What does she mean? How do you relate this statement to your own life?
2. What about the Thank You Notes? Whom would you write thank-you notes to...and why? Why are they important?
3. Another quote: "Anytime the rich and poor combine, we should listen to whoever has the least power." Talk about what that means. Do you agree...or disagree?
4. Many reviewers use the word "hilarioius" when talking about this book. Do you feel Hatmaker's humor enhances or detracts from her message?
5. Talk about the reasons Hatmaker gives for young people leaving the church. Do you agree with her assessment?
6. Read what Hatmaker says below about raising children. Do you agree?
The best we can do is give them Jesus. Not rules, not behaviors, not entertainment, not shame. I have no confidence in myself but every confidence in Jesus….Jesus is the only thing that will endure. He trumps parenting techniques, church culture, tight boundaries, and best-laid plans. Jesus can lead our children long after they’ve left our homes.
7. What other sections—or passages—in the book strike you as particularly powerful, insightful, or perhaps even controversial...and why?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Between the World and Me
Ta-Nehisi Coates, 2015
Random House
166 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781925240702
Summary
Winner, 2015 National Book Award
This is your country, this is your world, this is your body, and you must find some way to live within the all of it.
In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis.
Americans have built an empire on the idea of "race," a falsehood that damages us all but falls most heavily on the bodies of black women and men—bodies exploited through slavery and segregation, and, today, threatened, locked up, and murdered out of all proportion.
What is it like to inhabit a black body and find a way to live within it? And how can we all honestly reckon with this fraught history and free ourselves from its burden?
Between the World and Me is Ta-Nehisi Coates’s attempt to answer these questions in a letter to his adolescent son. Coates shares with his son—and readers—the story of his awakening to the truth about his place in the world through a series of revelatory experiences, from Howard University to Civil War battlefields, from the South Side of Chicago to Paris, from his childhood home to the living rooms of mothers whose children’s lives were taken as American plunder.
Beautifully woven from personal narrative, reimagined history, and fresh, emotionally charged reportage, Between the World and Me clearly illuminates the past, bracingly confronts our present, and offers a transcendent vision for a way forward. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—September 30, 1975
• Where—Baltimore, Maryland, USA
• Education—Howard University (no degree)
• Awards—National Book Award, George Polk Award, Hillman Prize (Journalism)
• Currently—lives in New York, New York
Ta-Nehisi Coates (TAH-nə-HAH-see KOHTS) is an American writer, journalist, and educator. Coates is a National Correspondent for The Atlantic, where he writes about cultural, social and political issues, particularly as regards African-Americans. In 2015, he won the National Book Award for Between the World and Me.
Coates has worked for the Village Voice, Washington City Paper, and Time. He has contributed to the New York Times Magazine, Washington Post, Washington Monthly, O, and other publications. In 2008 he published his memoir, The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons, and an Unlikely Road to Manhood. His second book, Between the World and Me, was published in 2015 to wide acclaim.
Early life
Coates was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to father, William Paul "Paul" Coates, a Vietnam War veteran, former Black Panther, publisher and librarian, and mother, Cheryl Waters-Hassan, who was a teacher. Coates' father founded and ran Black Classic Press, a publisher specializing in African-American titles, as a grassroots organization with a printing press in the basement of their home.
Coates grew up in the Mondawmin neighborhood of Baltimore during the crack epidemic. His father had seven children—five boys and two girls, by four women (his first wife had three children, Coates' mother had two boys, and the other two women each had one child). In Coates' family the important focus was on child-rearing. The children were raised together in a close-knit family; most lived with their mothers and often visited their father. Coates, however, said he lived with his father full-time. As a Black Panther, Coates' father adhered to the Black Panther doctrine of free love rather than monogamy.
As a child Coates, enjoyed comic books and Dungeons & Dragons. His interest in books was instilled at an early age when his mother punished bad behavior by making him write essays. Another big influence was his father's work with the Black Classic Press; Coates said he read many of the books his father published.
Coates attended a number of Baltimore-area schools, including William H. Lemmel Middle School (where some scenes for The Wire TV series were shot), Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, before graduating from Woodlawn High School. His father was hired as a librarian at Howard University, which enabled some of his children to attend with tuition remission.
After high school, he attended Howard University and left without a degree after five years to start a career in journalism. He is the only child in his family without a college degree. In summer 2014, Coates attended an intensive program in French at Middlebury College to prepare for a writing fellowship in Paris.
Journalism
Coates' first journalism job was as a reporter at the the Washington City Paper; his editor was David Carr, who later wrote for the New York Times.
From 2000 to 2007, Coates worked as a journalist at various publications, including Philadelphia Weekly, Village Voice and Time. His first article for The Atlantic, "This Is How We Lost to the White Man," about Bill Cosby and conservatism, started a new, more successful phase of his career. The article led to an appointment with a regular blog column for The Atlantic, a blog that was both popular, influential and had a high level of community engagement.
Coates became a senior editor at The Atlantic, for which he wrote feature articles as well as maintained a blog. Topics covered by the blog included politics, history, race, culture as well as sports, and music.
His writings on race, such as his September 2012 Atlantic cover piece "Fear of a Black President," and his June 2014 feature "The Case for Reparations," received special praise and won his blog a place on the Best Blogs of 2011 list by Time magazine, as well as the 2012 Hillman Prize for Opinion & Analysis Journalism. The blog's comment section has also received praise for its high level of engagement; Coates curates and moderates the comments heavily so that, "the jerks are invited to leave [and] the grown-ups to stay and chime in."
In discussing his Atlantic article on "The Case for Reparations," Coates said he had worked on the article for almost two years, reading Rutgers University professor Beryl Satter's book, Family Properties: Race, Real Estate, and the Exploitation of Black Urban America,. Satter's book is a history of redlining, which discussed the grassroots organization, the Contract Buyers League, of which Clyde Ross was one of the leaders. The focus of the article was more on the institutional racism of housing discrimination than on reparations for slavery.
Coates has worked as a guest columnist for the New York Times. He turned down an offer from them to become a regular columnist.
Books
In 2008, Coates published The Beautiful Struggle, a memoir about coming of age in West Baltimore and its effect on him. In the book, he discusses the influence of his father, a former Black Panther; the prevailing street crime of the era and its effects on his older brother; his own troubled experience attending Baltimore-area schools; and his eventual graduation and enrollment in Howard University.
Coates' second book, Between the World and Me, was published in July 2015. Coates said that one of the origins of the book came from the murder of a college friend Prince Carmen Jones Jr. who was killed by police in a case of mistaken identity. In an ongoing discussion about reparation, continuing the work of his June 2014 Atlantic article, Coates cited the bill sponsored by Representative John Conyers "H.R.40 - Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act" that has been introduced every year since 1989. One of the themes of the book was about what physically affected African-American lives, their bodies being enslaved, violence, that come from slavery and various forms of institutional racism.
Teaching
Coates was the 2012–14 MLK visiting professor for writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the City University of New York as its journalist-in-residence in the fall of 2014.
Personal life
Coates currently resides in Harlem with his wife, Kenyatta Matthews, and son, Samori Maceo-Paul Coates. His son is named after Samori Ture, a Mande chief who fought French colonialism, after black Cuban revolutionary Antonio Maceo Grajales, and after Coates' father. Coates met his wife when they were both students at Howard University. He is an atheist and a feminist.
Coates says that his first name, Ta-Nehisi, is an Egyptian name his father gave him that means Nubia, and in a loose translation is "land of the black." Nubia is a region along the Nile river located in current day northern Sudan and southern Egypt. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 8/27/2015.)
Book Reviews
Powerful and passionate...profoundly moving...a searing meditation on what it means to be black in America today.
Michiko Kakutani - New York Times
Brilliant.... [Ta-Nehisi Coates] is firing on all cylinders, and it is something to behold: a mature writer entirely consumed by a momentous subject and working at the extreme of his considerable powers at the very moment national events most conform to his vision.
Washington Post
I’ve been wondering who might fill the intellectual void that plagued me after James Baldwin died. Clearly it is Ta-Nehisi Coates. The language of Between the World and Me, like Coates’s journey, is visceral, eloquent, and beautifully redemptive. And its examination of the hazards and hopes of black male life is as profound as it is revelatory. This is required reading.
Toni Morrison
A work of rare beauty and revelatory honesty.... Between the World and Me is a love letter written in a moral emergency, one that Coates exposes with the precision of an autopsy and the force of an exorcism.... Coates is frequently lauded as one of America’s most important writers on the subject of race today, but this in fact undersells him: Coates is one of America’s most important writers on the subject of America today.... [He’s] a polymath whose breadth of knowledge on matters ranging from literature to pop culture to French philosophy to the Civil War bleeds through every page of his book, distilled into profound moments of discovery, immensely erudite but never showy.
Slate
(Starred review.) [A]n immense, multifaceted work. This is a poet's book, revealing the sensibility of a writer to whom words—exact words—matter.... [I]t speaks so forcefully to issues of grave interest today....[and] will be hailed as a classic of our time.
Publishers Weekly
(Starred review.) [W]hat it means to be black in America, especially...a black male.... This powerful little book may well serve as a primer for black parents, particularly those with sons.... [A] candid perspective on the headlines and the history of being black in America. —Thomas J. Davis, Arizona State Univ., Tempe
Library Journal
(Starred review.) [Coates] came to understand that "race" does not fully explain "the breach between the world and me," yet race exerts a crucial force, and young blacks like his son are vulnerable and endangered.... Coates desperately wants his son to be able to live "apart from fear—even apart from me." ... [A] moving, potent testament.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1. Between the World and Me has been called a book about race, but the author argues that race itself is a flawed, if not useless, concept—it is, if anything, nothing more than a pretext for racism. Early in the book he writes, "Race, is the child of racism, not the father." The idea of race has been so important in the history of America and in the self-identification of its people—and racial designations have literally marked the difference between life and death in some instances. How does discrediting the idea of race as an immutable, unchangeable fact change the way we look at our history? Ourselves?
2. Fear is palpably described in the book’s opening section and shapes much of Coates’s sense of himself and the world. "When I was your age," Coates writes to his son, "the only people I knew were black, and all of them were powerfully, adamantly, dangerously afraid." How did this far inform and distort Coates’s life and way of looking at the world? Is this kind of fear inevitable? Can you relate to his experience? Why or why not?
3. The book—in the tradition of classic texts like Ranier Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet to James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time—is written in the form of a letter. Why do you think Coates chose this literary device? Did the intimacy of an address from a father to his son make you feel closer to the material or kept at a distance?
4. One can read Between the World and Me in many different ways. It may be seen as an exploration of the African American experience, the black American male experience, the experience of growing up in urban America; it can be read as a book about raising a child or being one. Which way of reading resonates most with you?
5. Coates repeatedly invokes the sanctity of the black "body" and describes the effects of racism in vivid, physical terms. He writes:
And so enslavement must be casual wrath and random manglings, the gashing of heads and brains blown out over the river as the body seeks to escape.… There is no uplifting way to say this. I have no praise anthems, nor old Negro spirituals. The spirit and soul are the body and brain, which are destructive—that is precisely why they are so precious. And the soul did not escape. The spirit did not steal away on gospel wings.
Coates’s atheistic assertion that the soul and mind are not separate from the physical body is in conflict with the religious faith that has been so crucial to many African Americans. How does this belief affect his outlook on racial progress?
6. Coates is adamant that he is a writer, not an activist, but critics have argued that, given his expansive following and prominent position, he should be offering more solutions and trying harder to affect real change in American race relations. Do you think he holds any sort of responsibility to do so? Why or why not?
7. Some critics have argued that Between the World and Me lacks adequate representation of black women’s experiences. In her otherwise positive Los Angeles Times review, Rebecca Carroll writes: "What is less fine is the near-complete absence of black women throughout the book." Do you think that the experience of women is erased in this book? Do you think Coates had an obligation to include more stories of black women in the text?
8. While much of the book concerns fear and the haunting effects of violence, it also has moments where Coates explores moments of joy and his blossoming understanding of the meaning of love. What notions of hard-won joy and love does the book explore? How do these episodes function in counterpoint to the book’s darker passages?
9. Do you think Between the World and Me leaves us with hope for race relations in America? Why or why not? Do you think "hope" was what Coates was trying to convey to readers? If not, what are you left with at the end of the book? If so, hope in what?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)
Rising Strong: The Reckoning, the Rumble, the Revolution
Brene Brown, 2015
Random House
336 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780812995824
Summary
When we deny our stories, they define us.
When we own our stories, we get to write the ending.
Social scientist Brene Brown has ignited a global conversation on courage, vulnerability, shame, and worthiness. Her pioneering work uncovered a profound truth:
Vulnerability—the willingness to show up and be seen with no guarantee of outcome—is the only path to more love, belonging, creativity, and joy. But living a brave life is not always easy: We are, inevitably, going to stumble and fall.
It is the rise from falling that Brown takes as her subject in Rising Strong. As a grounded theory researcher, Brown has listened as a range of people—from leaders in Fortune 500 companies and the military to artists, couples in long-term relationships, teachers, and parents—shared their stories of being brave, falling, and getting back up.
She asked herself, What do these people with strong and loving relationships, leaders nurturing creativity, artists pushing innovation, and clergy walking with people through faith and mystery have in common? The answer was clear: They recognize the power of emotion and they’re not afraid to lean in to discomfort.
Walking into our stories of hurt can feel dangerous. But the process of regaining our footing in the midst of struggle is where our courage is tested and our values are forged. Our stories of struggle can be big ones, like the loss of a job or the end of a relationship, or smaller ones, like a conflict with a friend or colleague.
Regardless of magnitude or circumstance, the rising strong process is the same: We reckon with our emotions and get curious about what we’re feeling; we rumble with our stories until we get to a place of truth; and we live this process, every day, until it becomes a practice and creates nothing short of a revolution in our lives.
Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process, Brown writes, that teaches us the most about who we are. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—November 18, 1965
• Where—San Antonio, Texas, USA
• Education—B.S.W., University of Texas, Austin; M.S.W., Ph.D., University of Houston
• Awards—Outstanding Faculty Award (University of Houston)
• Currently—lives in Houston, Texas
Brene Brown is an American scholar, author, and public speaker, who is currently a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. Over the last twelve years she has been involved in research on a range of topics, including vulnerability, courage, worthiness, and shame. She is the author of three New York Times Bestsellers: The Gifts of Imperfection (2010), Daring Greatly (2012), and Rising Strong (2015). She and her work have been featured on PBS, NPR, TED, and CNN.
Early life
Brown was born in San Antonio, Texas and spent a formative period in New Orleans, Louisiana. She completed her Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) at University of Texas at Austin, followed by a Master of Social Work (MSW) and Ph.D. from the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston.
Career
Brown began her career as a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work. Her research focuses on authentic leadership and wholeheartedness in families, schools, and organizations. She presented a 2012 TED talk and two 2010 TEDx talks.
Brown is the author of...
♦ I Thought It Was Just Me (but it isn’t): Telling the Truth About Perfectionism, Inadequacy, and Power (2007)
♦ The Gifts of Imperfection: Letting Go of Who We Think We Should Be and Embracing Who We Are (2010)
♦ Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead (2012)
♦ Rising Strong: The Reckoning, the Rumble, the Revolution (2015).
Her articles have appeared in many national newspapers.
In March 2013, she appeared on Super Soul Sunday talking with Oprah Winfrey about her book, Daring Greatly. The title of the book comes from Theodore Roosevelt’s speech “Citizenship in a Republic”, which is also referred as "The Man in the Arena" speech, given at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910.
Brown is the CEO and Chief Learning Officer for The Daring Way, a training and certification program for helping professionals who want to facilitate her work on vulnerability, courage and worthiness.
Honors and awards
Houston Woman Magazine voted Brown one of the most influential women of 2009. Her 2010 Ted Talk is one of the most watched talks on the Ted.com website. She has received numerous teaching awards including the Graduate College of Social Work's Outstanding Faculty Award. (From Wikipedia. Retrieved 8/26/2015.)
Book Reviews
This book is about owning your story and choosing how to actively engage with the world. With Brown's excellent guidance, it's easy for readers to become as invested in her story as they are in their own, and, more importantly, to move beyond preconceived stories about themselves.
Publishers Weekly
Brown studies issues of vulnerability and shame—which leads her directly to this book's subject, bravery, both what it is and how we can find it in ourselves.... [T]his book is a sure bet for many social science collections.
Library Journal
[S]olid advice.... [T]the author gives readers the necessary tools to get up and try again. Brown outlines a three-step process—the reckoning, the rumble, and the revolution.... An innovative one-two-three-punch approach to self-help and healing from an author who has helped countless readers change their lives.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
Also, consider these LitLovers talking points to help start your discussion:
1. Brene Brown posits in Rising Strong that all of us will fall at some point. Discuss what she means by that. Is she correct? Will all of us fall at some point...all of us? Can you think of an example from your own life?
2. What does Brown mean by personal vulnerability? Why is it important, according to the author, to accept our own vulnerability?
3. What is the significance of the book's title, "Rising Strong"? Talk about the process of rising through shame and vulnerability: in otherwords, can you offer a fairly clear and concise summary of the thesis Brown presents in Rising Strong? Consider the steps: "the reckoning, the rumble, and the revolution."
4. Are you able to recognize yourself in some of Brown's examples of learning to be clear-eyed about who you are—your faults, biases, and weaknesses, as well as your strengths? How can one honestly assess oneself? What often prevents us from a true assessment?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Yes Please
Amy Poehler, 2014
HarperCollins
288 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781594206276
Summary
Do you want to get to know the woman we first came to love on Comedy Central's Upright Citizens Brigade? Do you want to spend some time with the lady who made you howl with laughter on Saturday Night Live, and in movies like Baby Mama, Blades of Glory, and They Came Together?
Do you find yourself daydreaming about hanging out with the actor behind the brilliant Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation? Did you wish you were in the audience at the last two Golden Globes ceremonies, so you could bask in the hilarity of Amy's one-liners?
If your answer to these questions is "Yes Please!" then you are in luck.
In her first book, one of our most beloved funny folk delivers a smart, pointed, and ultimately inspirational read. Full of the comedic skill that makes us all love Amy, Yes Please is a rich and varied collection of stories, lists, poetry (Plastic Surgery Haiku, to be specific), photographs, mantras and advice.
With chapters like "Treat Your Career Like a Bad Boyfriend," "Plain Girl Versus the Demon" and "The Robots Will Kill Us All," Yes Please will make you think as much as it will make you laugh. Honest, personal, real, and righteous, Yes Please is full of words to live by. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—September 16, 1971
• Where—Newton, Massachusetts USA
• Education—B.A., Boston College
• Awards—Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (TV)
• Currently—lives in New York City, New York, and in Los Angeles, California
Amy Meredith Poehler is an American actress, comedian, voice artist, director, producer, and writer. She moved to Chicago in 1993 to study improv at The Second City and ImprovOlympic. In 1996, she moved to New York City after becoming part of the improvisational comedy troupe Upright Citizens Brigade, which later developed into an eponymous television show that aired on Comedy Central for three seasons. She was also one of the founding members of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in 1999.
Amy Poehler was a cast member on the NBC television series Saturday Night Live from 2001 to 2008. In 2004, she became the co-anchor of the "Weekend Update" sketch alongside her friend and colleague Tina Fey. Poehler is known for voicing Bessie Higgenbottom in the 2008–2011 Nickelodeon series, The Mighty B! and Homily Clock from the English dub of The Secret World of Arrietty. From 2009 to 2015, she starred as Leslie Knope in the sitcom Parks and Recreation, for which she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Musical or Comedy Series in 2014.
Poehler served as an executive producer on the Swedish-American sitcom Welcome to Sweden, along with her brother Greg Poehler. The series aired on NBC. She is also an executive producer on Broad City which airs on Comedy Central, and appeared in the Season 1 finale.
She also voiced Joy in the 2015 animated Pixar film Inside Out, and received critical acclaim for her work. Since August 2015, she has served as an executive producer on the Hulu original series, Difficult People, which stars her former Parks and Recreation co-star Billy Eichner and comedian Julie Klausner, the latter of which is the creator of the show.
Early life
Poehler was born in Newton, Massachusetts to high school teachers Eileen Frances (nee Milmore) and William Grinstead Poehler. Her brother, Greg Poehler, is a producer and actor. She grew up in nearby Burlington.
While attending Boston College, Poehler was a member of My Mother's Fleabag, the oldest collegiate improv comedy troupe in the United States. She graduated from Boston College with a bachelor's degree in media and communications in 1993 and moved to Chicago, where she studied improv at Second City with friend and future co-star Tina Fey.
Upright Citizens Brigade
During her time at Second City and Improv Olympic in Chicago, Poehler studied under Del Close and Charna Halpern along with Matt Besser, where they were part of the original improv team called the Upright Citizens Brigade.
Poehler, along with Bresser, Matt Walsh, and Ian Roberts, performed sketch and improv around Chicago until the four moved to New York City in 1996. There the group quickly scored a TV gig, appearing as sketch regulars on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
In 1998, the group debuted at Comedy Central and opened an improv theatre/training center at 161 W. 22nd Street, in the space of a former strip club. The UCB theatre held shows seven nights a week in addition to offering classes in sketch comedy writing and improv.
Comedy Central canceled the Upright Citizens Brigade program in 2000 after its third season. The foursome continues to perform together in live improv shows at their comedy theatres in both New York and Los Angeles.
Saturday Night Live
Poehler joined the cast of SNL during the 2001–02 season; her debut episode—the first produced after the 9/11 attacks—included host Reese Witherspoon, musical guest Alicia Keys, and New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani as a special guest. Poehler was promoted from featured player to full cast member in her first season on the show, only the third person to have earned this distinction (after Harry Shearer and Eddie Murphy).
Beginning with the 2004–05 season, she co-anchored "Weekend Update" with Tina Fey, replacing the newly departed Jimmy Fallon. When Fey left after the 2005–06 season to devote time to the sitcom she created, 30 Rock, Seth Meyers joined Poehler at the anchor desk.
It was officially announced on September 16, 2008, that Poehler would be leaving SNL in October due to the birth of her child. She returned to the show on November 3, 2008, during the "SNL Presidential Bash '08," "hosting" as Hillary Clinton but left the show formally at the end of the year. She returned several times for special shows, including hosting a 2010 show with Katy Perry and anchoring "Weekend Update" in 2015 with Tina Fey and Jane Curtin for SNL's 40th anniversary show.
Parks and Recreation
On July 21, 2008, NBC officially announced Poehler's new series, Parks and Recreation in which Poehler plays Deputy Director of the Parks Department, Leslie Knope, in the fictional city of Pawnee, Indiana. After a poorly regarded first season, the show's second, third, fourth and fifth have been well received by critics, and Poehler received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for her role.
Poehler has written four episodes of the series and has also directed episodes, winning several Emmy nomoniations for both efforts, as well as nominations for best actress. In 2014, she won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Television Series—Comedy at the 71st Golden Globe Awards, which she co-hosted with Tina Fey.
Other work and recognition
Poehler has appeared in numerous films—Wet Hot American Summer, Mean Girls, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, Blades of Glory, Envy, Shrek the Third, Mr. Woodcock, and Hamlet 2. She also appeared in various comedy segments on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, often playing her recurring role as Andy Richter's little sister.
In 2011, Poehler was included as one of Time magazine's "100 most influential people in the world." She also delivered the Class Day address to Harvard University's class of 2011.
Poehler and Fey have jointly hosted the Golden Globe Awards ceremony three times: the first time in 2013. Their inaugural appearance garnered attention due to a joke directed at Taylor Swift, who later responded with a Madeleine Albright quote: "There's a special place in hell for women who don't help other women." Poehler's response to Swift's comment, made as part of a Vanity Fair interview, was humorous, agreeing that she will go to hell, but for "other reasons."
Poehler hosted the Golden Globes ceremony with Fey again in 2014 as part of a three-year contract. Gilbert Cruz, of the Vulture website, wrote: "They killed it last year with their opening monologue and they did so again this year."
The two hosted the Golden Globe Awards ceremony for the third successive time in 2015, confirming prior to the event that the third time would be their last. Rolling Stone magazine wrote afterward that the pair "left no superstar unscathed during their riotous opening monologue," in which they "casually roasted the assembled masses." The Interview (2014), Bill Cosby, and Steve Carell were among the numerous subjects covered in the routine.
In 2014, Poehler published a memoir, Yes Please. She explained in a promotional interview with National Public Radio (NPR) that she was
...used to writing in characters and not really writing about myself.... [I]t was easier to share the early parts of my life rather than my own current events.
Topics covered in the book include body image, parenthood and learning about the limitations of physical appearance.
Personal life
Poehler married actor Will Arnett in 2003 and had a recurring role on the series Arrested Development as the wife of Arnett's character Gob Bluth. They also played a quasi-incestuous brother-sister ice skating team in the 2007 film Blades of Glory, and appeared together in Horton Hears a Who!, On Broadway, Spring Breakdown, and Monsters vs. Aliens. Arnett also had a guest appearance on Parks and Recreation. Both also did voice acting in The Secret World of Arrietty.
Together, Poehler and Arnett have two sons: Archibald (2008) and Abel (2010). After the couple announced in 2012 that they were ending their nine-year marriage, Poehler began dating actor and comedian Nick Kroll. He is mentioned in her memoir, Yes Please. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 8/25/2015.)
Book Reviews
Her heart isn’t in this book, which is O.K.—heart is overrated. But the jokes aren’t very good, either. “Yes Please” reminds you of that squeaky fact: Even smart, hilarious people, the ones you wish were your great friends, sometimes can’t write. The world isn’t fair that way.
Dwight Garner - New York Times
Funny, wise, earnest, honest, spiritually ambitious.... [Amy Poehler is] a smart and funny woman who isn't either of those things all the time and doesn't mind admitting it because she thinks that's important.
LA Times
The funniest, smartest and frankest memoir I've ever read. (Books of the Year 2014.)
Doug Johnstone - Herald (UK)
A joy.... [Poehler] has particularly smart advice on how to ignore the internal whispers that give rise to self-loathing; it should be piped into the girls' changing rooms at every secondary school. (Books of the Year 2014.)
Evening Standard (UK)
Hilarious...wickedly funny and razor sharp.
Observer (UK)
Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to the only book I care about these days: Yes Please by Amy Poehler. Amy Poehler is an American actor, comedian and writer. She is also a mighty force for good... I know you're sick of celebrity memoirs, you're sick of female celebrities talking about feminism, blah blah blah. Well, that's just fine because Poehler's book is so much more than that. Poehler is the only person in the world other than Nora Ephron who can be funny about divorce (and she is so funny about divorce), and she is definitely the only person in the world from whom I will accept sex tips (and her sex tips are great). But most of all, she's super smart.
Hadley Freeman - Guardian (UK)
Required reading for all young women. (Best Books of 2014.)
Huffington Post
[A] bristlingly intelligent, guffaw-out-loud memoir.... Yes Please isn't a scan of the comedic brain so much as it is something far better-the full exposure of Poehler's funny and very magnanimous heart.
Elle
Yes Please is what happens if you take the wit of Saturday Night Live, sprinkle it with the warmth of Nora Ephron and marinade it in the spirit of the best, most empowering women's magazine.... Poehler is that rare thing: wise without being bossy, smart without making you feel a bit stupid, funny without making you wince. And her book is like sitting in your kitchen with your best friend, drinking too much wine, laughing, crying and maybe doing embarrassing mum dancing.
Harper's Bazaar
Half memoir, half advice column, and 100 percent wisecracking, sharp-as-hell, belly-laugh-making Poehler.
GQ
[Amy Poehler] is simply one of the best things about the 21st century so far.... [O]ne of this year's essential reads.
Stylist
As brilliant and hilarious and adorable as the woman herself.
Marie Claire
Life advice, personal anecdotes and a touch of sex all beautifully handled by the warmest US comedy goddess... Actually adorable.
Grazia Daily
Our favourite agony aunt... Witty, real-life advice Vogue A part-memoir, part-manual mashup of inspirational career counsel and laugh-out-loud sex advice.
Good Housekeeping
Anyone who loves Amy Poehler's biting comedic style will love the SNL star's autobiography... hilarious Stylist Poehler's first book of personal stories and advice, in the vein of Tina Fey's Bossypants and Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?... One of America's most beloved comics and actresses.
The Millions
Poehler, the sharp and self-deprecating Emmy-winning star of TV's Parks and Recreation, takes a stab here at autobiography mixed with advice on sex, babies, and even divorce.... Her memoir is as bewitching and chameleonlike as Poehler herself is when she appears onstage and on-screen.
Publishers Weekly
The author's successful career proves that collaboration, good manners and gratitude are assets in both business and life. She has written a happy, angst-free memoir with stories told without regret or shame....a series of lessons learned about achieving success through ambition and a resolute spirit.... A wise and winning—and polite—memoir and manifesto.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
Use our LitLovers Book Club Resources; they can help with discussions for any book:
• How to Discuss a Book (helpful discussion tips)
• Generic Discussion Questions—Fiction and Nonfiction
• Read-Think-Talk (a guided reading chart)
Also, consider using these LitLovers talking points to help start your discussion:
1. Amy Poehler comes across as modest and self-deprecating, especially when she says she fears that she hasn't "lived a life full enough to look back on." Think about that sentence. Is she right? Has her life lacked fullness, or has she lived a rather full life? Do you believe that you have lived a full-enough life to write about? At what age, or under what circumstances, have any of us lived long enough to reflect on and, perhaps, to offer solice or advice to others?
2. Follow-up to Question 1: Poehler also goes on to say in that same sentence (from above) that she's "too old to get by on being pithy and cute." In Yes Please does she fall back on cuteness...or does she offer solid insights into her own life—insights which can serve as advice to others? In other words, what do you think of Poehler's book: is it cute, or is it substantive...or a bit of both?
3. Poehler seems to indicate that her success hasn't been a matter of luck or due to the kindness of others (yes, many people offered helped along the way) but rather the result of desire, hard work, and ability. What do you think of her claim? To what extent are any of us responsible for our successes...and failures? How much do we depend on sheer luck and help from family or mentors. On the other hand, how important is personal drive, focus, and ability?
4. In what way is Yes Please as much (if not more) a book about Poehler's path to maturity than it is about her road to success?
5. What insights have you gained in reading Yes Please? Is there any part of Poehler's experience that parallels your own journey in life?
6. One critic has said that the chapter "I'm So Proud of You," should be required reading in high school. Do you agree? Why or why not?
7. What about the chapter "Sorry, Sorry, Sorry"? Why was it so difficult for Poehler to admit her error? What does it reveal about her as a person? Has something similar ever happened to you?
8. Talk about the book's structure. Does it feel coherent, disorganized, over-stuffed with fillers...or just about right?
9. What does Yes Please reveal about the field of entertainment and the people who work in it? Has it altered your opinion of celebrities and show business...for the better or for the worse? Or has it confirmed your previous beliefs?
10. On the whole, how do you feel about Amy Poehler after reading Yes Please?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, on line of off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Modern Romance: An Investigation
Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg, 2015
Penguin
288 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781594206276
Summary
A hilarious, thoughtful, and in-depth exploration of the pleasures and perils of modern romance from one of this generation’s sharpest comedic voices
At some point, every one of us embarks on a journey to find love. We meet people, date, get into and out of relationships, all with the hope of finding someone with whom we share a deep connection.
his seems standard now, but it’s wildly different from what people did even just decades ago. Single people today have more romantic options than at any point in human history. With technology, our abilities to connect with and sort through these options are staggering. So why are so many people frustrated?
Some of our problems are unique to our time. Why did this guy just text me an emoji of a pizza? Should I go out with this girl even though she listed Combos as one of her favorite snack foods? Combos?! My girlfriend just got a message from some dude named Nathan. Who’s Nathan? Did he just send her a photo of his penis? Should I check just to be sure?
But the transformation of our romantic lives can’t be explained by technology alone. In a short period of time, the whole culture of finding love has changed dramatically.
A few decades ago, people would find a decent person who lived in their neighborhood. Their families would meet and, after deciding neither party seemed like a murderer, they would get married and soon have a kid, all by the time they were twenty-four. Today, people marry later than ever and spend years of their lives on a quest to find the perfect person, a soul mate.
For years, Aziz Ansari has been aiming his comic insight at modern romance, but for Modern Romance, the book, he decided he needed to take things to another level. He teamed up with NYU sociologist Eric Klinenberg and designed a massive research project, including hundreds of interviews and focus groups conducted everywhere from Tokyo to Buenos Aires to Wichita.
They analyzed behavioral data and surveys and created their own online research forum on Reddit, which drew thousands of messages. They enlisted the world’s leading social scientists, including Andrew Cherlin, Eli Finkel, Helen Fisher, Sheena Iyengar, Barry Schwartz, Sherry Turkle, and Robb Willer. The result is unlike any social science or humor book we’ve seen before.
In Modern Romance, Ansari combines his irreverent humor with cutting-edge social science to give us an unforgettable tour of our new romantic world. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—February 23, 1983
• Where—Columbia, South Carolina, USA
• Education—B.A., New York University
• Currently—lives in New York City, New York
Aziz Ishmael Ansari is an American actor and comedian. He starred as Tom Haverford on the NBC show Parks and Recreation.
Ansari began his career performing standup comedy in New York City during the summer of 2000 while attending New York University. In 2007, he created and starred in the critically acclaimed MTV sketch comedy show Human Giant, which ran for two seasons. This led to acting roles in feature films, including Funny People; I Love You, Man; Observe and Report; and 30 Minutes or Less.
In addition to his acting work, Ansari has continued to work as a standup comedian. He released his debut CD/DVD, entitled "Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening," in January 2010 on Comedy Central Records, and still tours nationally between acting commitments.
In 2010 and 2011, he performed his Dangerously Delicious tour. This tour was self-released for download on his website in March 2012 and debuted on Comedy Central in May 2012. He completed his third major tour of new material, Buried Alive, in the summer of 2013. His fourth major comedy special, Live at Madison Square Garden, was released on Netflix in 2015.
His first book, Modern Romance: An Investigation, was released in June 2015
Early life and career
Aziz Ansari was born in Columbia, South Carolina, to a Tamil Muslim family from Tamil Nadu, India. His mother, Fatima, works in a medical office, and his father, Shoukath, is a gastroenterologist. Ansari grew up in Bennettsville, South Carolina, where he attended Marlboro Academy as well as the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics. He graduated from New York University with a major in marketing.
He frequently performed at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, as well as weekly shows such as Invite Them Up. In 2005, Rolling Stone included him in their annual "Hot List" as their choice for the "Hot Standup," and he won the Jury Award for "Best Standup" at HBO's 2006 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, Colorado.
Human Giant
Around the summer of 2005, Ansari began collaborating with fellow comedians Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer (both from the improv troupe Respecto Montalban), as well as director Jason Woliner to make short films.
The first series created by the group was Shutterbugs, which followed Huebel and Ansari as cutthroat child talent agents. This was followed up by the Illusionators, which starred Ansari and Scheer as Criss Angel–style goth magicians. In mid-2006, MTV greenlit a sketch series from the group, which debuted in 2007. The critically acclaimed show completed two seasons and the group was offered a third season, but it opted to pursue other opportunities.
Parks and Recreation
The show, Parks and Recreation, debuted in 2009 with Ansari portraying government employee Tom Haverford. Ansari's performance has received notable praise from critics, including Entertainment Weekly naming him one of 2009's "Breakout TV Stars", TV Guide naming him a "Scene Stealer" and Yahoo! TV placing him in the No. 1 spot on its list of "TV MVPS."
MTV Movie Awards
On June 6, 2010, Ansari hosted the 2010 MTV Movie Awards. The show opened with a spoof of the film Precious with Ansari appearing as Aziz "Precious" Ansari. Ansari also created the short film "Stunt Kidz," which reunited him with his "Human Giant" castmates. A second short film was also made with actor Zach Galifianakis in which Ansari portrayed Taavon, Galifianakis' "swagger coach". He accepted Galifianakis' award for Best Comedic Performance in character as Taavon. Ansari also performed a musical tribute to the film Avatar in the style of singer R. Kelly.
Other notable television work
In addition to his work on Parks and Recreation, Ansari appeared on the HBO series Flight of the Conchords as a xenophobic fruit vendor who had difficulty telling the difference between Australians and New Zealanders. He had a recurring role in season eight of the ABC sitcom Scrubs as Ed, a new intern at the hospital. Ansari's character was written off the show so he could work on Parks and Recreation. Ansari also has a recurring role on the animated comedy Bob's Burgers as Darryl.
In 2011, Ansari made a cameo appearance in the music video for "Otis" by Jay-Z and Kanye West from their collaborative album, Watch the Throne.
Stand-up comedy
Even among various acting commitments, Ansari has continued performing and touring as a standup comedian. In 2006 and 2007, he toured with the Comedians of Comedy and Flight of the Conchords. In the fall of 2008 and early 2009, Ansari headlined his own comedy tour, the Glow in the Dark Tour. The material on this tour became the basis for a DVD/CD special for Comedy Central. The set, titled Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening, aired January 17, 2010, with a CD/LP/DVD release on January 19.
Ansari's comedy style tends to focus on aspects of his personal life. "I like talking about things that are going on in my life, because that's always going to be different and original", he says. "No one else is gonna be talking about my personal experiences."
In July 2010, Ansari began a new tour, Dangerously Delicious, which was in theaters across the United States; stops included the Bonnaroo Music Festival and Carnegie Hall in New York City. The tour wrapped with a filming for a special, Dangerously Delicious at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C., in June 2011. This special was released on his website in March 2012 for download or stream.
In 2012, Ansari announced a new tour entitled "Buried Alive," and a third stand-up special, Aziz Ansari: Buried Alive, was filmed during the tour at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and premiered on Netflix on November 1, 2013.
Writing
Ansari's first book, Modern Romance: An Investigation, was released in 2015. The book is about the comedic pitfalls of dating in the modern world and was written with sociologist Eric Klinenberg.
In 2014, it was reported that Ansari was in a relationship with professional chef Courtney McBroom. He has self-identified as a feminist, saying his girlfriend has helped influence him.
Ansari is a "foodie"; he and his friends Eric Wareheim and Jason Woliner have formed what they called "The Food Club," which involves dressing up in suits and captain hats and rewarding restaurants with "Food Club" plaques. The plaques have their faces engraved along with the words: “The Food Club has dined here and deemed it plaque-worthy.”
He explained to Vanity Fair,
It’s a really serious-looking plaque and all of the restaurants we've given it to have put it front and center. It’s funny because people will walk into a restaurant and be like, "What the fuck is the Food Club? Who are these guys etched in gold?"
They also produced a tongue-in-cheek video about the club for Jash, filming them debating whether or not restaurants were plaque-worthy. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 8/25/2015.)
Book Reviews
A sprightly, easygoing hybrid of fact, observation, advice and comedy, with Mr. Klinenberg, presumably, supplying the medicine—graphs, charts, statistics and the like—and Mr. Ansari dispensing the spoonfuls of sugar that help it go down. The best part of Modern Romance comes when Mr. Ansari and his team get people to share the most embarrassing aspects of their romantic quests.
Sarah Lyall - New York Times Book Review
With topics like online dating apps to serious social science research, the book is sure to have you laughing if not taking a few notes.
USA Today
Entertaining and illuminating.
Guardian
A hilarious, often unsettling account of what young singles go through as they search for love in the digital age.
Rolling Stone
A funny and scholarly examination of the 24-hour romance cycle.
Boston Globe
The book is an obsessive exploration of what makes hearts flutter and break across the globe, but most importantly, it dissects those ideas through the lens of a right-and-left swiping society. And as a result, Ansari’s final product doesn’t only feel complete—it’s hilariously executed, even without his unmistakable high-register voice belting the punchlines. At 250 pages, Modern Romance is a lean, pithy read that’s perfect to reach the tech-obsessed generation it explores.
Paste Magazine
With his first foray into the literary sphere, Ansari handedly accomplishes what he set out to do. Modern Romance provides insight into what people do to find love. He infuses their stories with his sass and parallels their shame with much of his own. On top of that, Ansari’s advice is easy to follow and backed with science and research. Modern Romance is the pinnacle of romantic guides—at least until a new dating app makes it obsolete.
VOX
It’s hard to think of another celebrity book that also feels like breaking news…. Aside from the jokes, the science of Modern Romance holds water, and is absolutely fascinating.
A.V. Club
This book is essentially an Aziz Ansari standup routine in print form. His unique voice is present throughout the book. One reason that people love Aziz is his outlook on life. He has a funny way of refocusing seemingly ordinary things and zeroing in on very small details that most would not notice. He brings all of that and more to the table with this book. This book is informative, presents a lot of thought provoking topics and discusses them thoroughly. Paired with Aziz’s distinct voice, this book is even more endearing.
The Source
Funny, informative, and surprisingly earnest.
Daily Beast
Modern Romance reads like a CliffsNotes to relationshipping as it is currently experienced by (mostly middle-class, Ansari admits, and mostly straight) Americans. It’s the familiar stuff of research and sitcomedy, distilled into a funny, and highly readable, summary.
Atlantic
You’re not going to find a traditional humor book. And that’s a good thing. Modern Romance is something a bit more unique: a comprehensive, in-depth sociological investigation into the "many challenges of looking for love in the digital age." Modern Romance gives an impressive overview of how the dating game has changed with the advent of cell phones and the Internet. But there’s also some practical advice peppered in there by Ansari himself.
Bustle.com
Even comedy phenoms get dumped. But when it was this Parks and Recreation star’s turn, he channeled the rejection into an extensive (and riotous) investigation of the current state of dating, going as far as recruiting an NYU sociologist to be his collaborator/wingman.
Oprah Magazine
Inspired by his own romantic woes, comedian Ansari teamed up with sociologist Klinenberg in 2013 to design and conduct a research project to better understand the dating game.... [M]ost of this material has been covered exhaustively elsewhere, but Ansari’s oddball sense of humor does bring something new and refreshing to the conversation.
Publishers Weekly
A social-science book that’s pleasant to read and a comedy book that actually has something to say.
Bookforum
[A] surprisingly insightful exploration of the complex realities of dating today.... Ansari's eminently readable book is successful, in part, because it not only lays out the history, evolution, and pitfalls of dating, it also offers sound advice on how to actually win today's constantly shifting game of love. Often hilarious, consistently informative, and unusually helpful.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We have two sets of Questions. The first set by LitLovers...and the second kindly submitted to us by Jennifer Johnson, Reference Librarian for the Springdale (Arkansas) Public Library. Thank you, Jennifer!
1. How have cell phones changed the conventions of modern dating? Overall, despite some of the drawbacks that Ansari points to in Modern Romance, would you say our instant texting and communications make the dating scene better or worse...or, basically, no different.
2. Talk about Ansari's statement that "the whole culture of finding love and a mate has radically changed” in the modern era." In what way...and why? Or maybe you don't really agree with him? If so, why not?
3. Discuss the research protocols that Ansari and his partner Eric Klinenberg followed in writing this book. Do their methods make the study more scientific or lend it more credibility? Does Ansari's humor undermine the seriousness of their study...enhance it...or make no difference to the results or to your experience of reading the book?
4. What do you think of the millennials' preference for texting rather than actually talking on the phone?
5. What aspects of Modern Romance do you relate to personally? What, say, embarrassments or mortifications have you experienced in the dating arena?
6. What parts of the book intrigued you, sparked your interest, irritated you...or made you laugh?
7. Toward the end, Ansari says this: “The main thing I’ve learned from this research is that we’re all in it together.” What exactly does he mean? Do you agree...or not?
8. What advice would YOU offer those in the dating world?
Additional Questions by Jennifer Johnson:
1. According to Ansari, he interviewed hundreds of people in diverse focus groups in 7 cities in 2013 – 2014. What biases can be identified in this statement—soul mate marriage “delivers levels of fulfillment that the generation of older people I interviewed rarely reached. (p. 25)”
2. What –isms does Ansari suffer from? (e.g. Feminism, Ageism, racism, sexist)
3. After reading his book, do you think Ansari has committed any failures in writing and researching the book?
4. Do you consider Ansari’s book an academic, well research book?
5. How much of a presence does Eric Klinenberg have in this manuscript?
6. How well are the generations represented in his book—Golden Age, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials?
7. Given the obvious digital divide, do you think Ansari’s subreddit participants are diverse and reflective of the general population?
8. Considering Ansari’s personal diverse background, do you think his research in the United States is diverse? What evidence does he provide that shows us he included diverse persons (various ages, gender, and ethnicity)?
9. What stereotypes are represented in his book?
10. Ansari gives the impression that he is an expert in modern romance, but is he? Can one be an expert on modern romance when they are obvious of romance throughout the ages?
11. Does Ansari have an agenda and did he research the book first or decide the outcome first and made the research match his outcome?
12. Do you think his research methods took into consideration differences between large metropolitan areas and the rural geographic areas?
13. Given that Ansari recently broke up with long term girlfriend in January 2016, what impact could this book have on his romantic live?
(First set of Questions by LitLovers; second set by Jennifer Johnson. Please feel free to use both sets, online of off, with attribution to Jennifer and LitLovers. Thanks.)