If there was ever a sign that the geekpocalypse is nigh, it's the list of new books coming out today.
Obviously I'm here on the Powell's blog this week because my new book is hitting the shelves (I'm sure there's a link somewhere on this page to find it), but there's more.
Geek culture is in the mainstream (well, maybe dipping its toes on the shore of the mainstream), and many of us poor sods who had our d20s stolen by jocks in high school now have books. It's starting to feel like maybe we weren't as isolated and alone as we thought, and, better than that, there are a lot of us with interesting things to say.
So separate from my own endeavors, I'd like to point you towards two other deep geek culture tomes coming out today.
The first is The Nerdist Way by Chris Hardwick. Chris is one of the best interviewers around right now (he made a middle-aged geeky parent like me sound... not uncool). He's the host of his own Nerdist podcast, and is quickly building a great, geeky podcasting empire along with his many friends from the stand-up comedy and entertainment industries. He is also, apparently, the go-to guy to host panels at conventions these days. He took his experiences learning how to focus his own borderline-OCD geek tendencies, and worked out a self-improvement guide with equal measures of humor and earnestness.
The second is That Is All by John Hodgman. You know who Hodgman is if you've ever seen one of the classic Mac vs. PC television ads, or watched The Daily Show regularly. But he's also a highly literate and extremely funny writer and performer who with this book is wrapping up his trilogy encompassing all the (semi-fictitious) world knowledge you'll ever need to know. And if being the personification of a computer wasn't enough, Hodgman also holds the geek claim-to-fame of having represented the first book by B-movie legend Bruce Campbell, If Chins Could Kill. That is All is Hodgman's humorous countdown to the end of the world which, some say, is coming just next year.
Indeed, if you are a serious-minded geek who always wants to be ready for whatever may come, perhaps all three of these books (Chris's, John's, and mine) should be part of your holiday reading. That is All will round out your general education and give you all the history you need to remember once the world ends. My book will teach you all the science and technology you need to take over the post-apocalyptic world as the Mad Scientist-in-chief, and Chris's book will give you the productivity skills to put it all together.
And then geek culture truly will be the mainstream.