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

D & D, LARP, SCA, MMORPG and other role play games are good and helpful to grow. In a nutshell it is what you will get from the ready of the journey of Ethan Gilsdorf in the world of Fantasy and role play games. A must read to make peace with those escaping games worlds.

Throughout this book, Ethan Gilsdorf wears his geek credentials on his sleeve. The text is deeply personal and honest, yet really connects to the heart of what it means to be not only a geek or a nerd but to be an outsider. Why do so many people retreat into literature or fantasy? Gilsdorf's novel illuminates so many different aspects of what is "fantasy" culture, from the nerdy extremes of tabletop Dungeons and Dragons (including playing OD & D at Lake Geneva with Frank Mentzer from the old TSR days) to the popular MMO World of Warcraft alongside some hardcore gamers. Gilsdorf really hits the nail on the head as he explores why we fantasize and why we use the fantasy medium to tell stories. I recommend this book very highly to anyone who loves fantasy, who has ever been curious about the "gamer" in your life or who just wants to read an amazing memoir.

The surprising first pages that tenderly and honestly reveal the rescuing role that Dungeons & Dragons played in Gilsdorf's early life serve as the perfect base camp for an elaborate and quirky quest into contemporary fantasy and gaming culture. Disarmed by the author's personal revelations, I found myself more open to the many unique characters he profiles than I might have been had the book taken a more purely journalistic approach. Gilsdorf's writing has the easy-going touch of a seasoned storyteller. His humane and wide-ranging investigation, (and the resulting discoveries of intelligent life and socially positive motivations) effectively rescues gamers from the phobic and demonizing lenses of prior media. Bravo.

Books about escapism and gaming too often swerve into cautionary tale territory. Negative and holier-than-though, they tend to lecture at length about the drawbacks to such pastimes and ignore the benefits of escapism. Thankfully, Gilsdorf's book is different. It tells the a story of Gilsdorf's own journey back into the fantasy fold and his analysis of why we all seek out alternative realities. He spends time with SCAdians, LARPers and MMORPGers alike, and he does it with respect and poignancy. 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.

This book has been my companion on business trips since I picked it up at Gencon 2009. It's the most thorough examination of the gaming subculture I've read so far (for example, "The Elfish Gene" and "Shared Fantasy: Role Playing Games as Social Worlds" mainly focus on D & D). I was particularly touched by the story Mr. Gilsdorf's mother, who's disability understandably affected him and his siblings at a tender age. D & D and Tolkein were escapes for me as a teenager too (although in a healthy way). Thank you for this insightful and poignant memoir of your journey through Fantasy/Gamer Geekdom.