Nerd, Maya Phillips
Nerd, Maya Phillips
List: $25.99 | Sale: $18.20
Club: $12.99

Nerd
Adventures in Fandom from This Universe to the Multiverse

Author: Maya Phillips

Narrator: Maya Phillips

Unabridged: 9 hr 39 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/11/2022


Synopsis

In the vein of You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) and Black Nerd Problems, this witty, incisive essay collection from New York Times critic at large Maya Phillips explores race, religion, sexuality, and more through the lens of her favorite pop culture fandoms.

From the moment Maya Phillips saw the opening scroll of Star Wars, Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, her life changed forever. Her formative years were spent loving not just the Star Wars saga, but superhero cartoons, anime, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Harry Potter, Tolkien, and Doctor Who—to name just a few.

As a critic at large at The New York Times, Phillips has written extensively on theater, poetry, and the latest blockbusters—with her love of some of the most popular and nerdy fandoms informing her career. Now, she analyzes the mark these beloved intellectual properties leave on young and adult minds, and what they teach us about race, gender expression, religion, and more.

Spanning from the nineties through to today, Nerd is a collection of cultural criticism essays through the lens of fandom for everyone from the casual Marvel movie watcher to the hardcore Star Wars expanded universe connoisseur. “In the same way that the fandoms Phillips addresses often provide community and a sense of connection, the experience of reading Nerd feels like making a new friend” (Karen Han, cultural critic and screenwriter).

About Maya Phillips

Maya Phillips is a critic at large at The New York Times and the author of the poetry collection Erou. She received her BFA in writing, literature, and publishing with a concentration in poetry from Emerson College and her MFA in poetry from Warren Wilson’s MFA Program for Writers. Maya’s alter egos are Natsu Dragneel, the Eleventh Doctor, and Dustin Henderson from Stranger Things. She lives in Brooklyn. Visit MayaBPhillips.com and follow her on Twitter @MayaBPhillips.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Renata

I kept seeing this book on our new nonfiction display and side-eying the cover, which I think is pretty bad tbh. It has vibes of those "In this house we believe..." signs. So I was like, no thanks, nerd. And then my friend Jessica specifically recommended it to me, and I was like, this one??? And she......more

Goodreads review by Daniel

It's a pretty solid rumination on different types of geek fandom, although it's far too anime heavy for my taste...and it also comes with some tiresome elements (such as the shots a Jodie Whittaker's era of Doctor Who) and an overly 90s focus that rubs against my GenX 80s background. Good stuff, but......more

Goodreads review by Mishma

Really enjoyed some chapters, but I think I was not nerd enough for some of them (especially the anime ones). A great work of culture criticism though!......more

Goodreads review by Shayna

Pros: - unique perspectives from a black woman and new yorker - essays well organized by topics - Good for someone who wants plots of shows/movies outlined or who wants to hear someone talk about fandoms. Cons: - This book is much more autobiography and show/movie synopsis than it is critique. While crit......more


Quotes

"Media critic Maya Phillips narrates her own memories and knowledge of fantasy, superheroes, sci-fi, and anime through a millennial lens. Her life as a New Yorker, as well as a Black woman, allows her to offer a unique perspective when examining certain aspects of nerd culture."