26 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Deserves The Kudos And More, April 21, 2007
This review is from: God Is a Woman: Dating Disasters (Paperback)
(Addendum: since writing this review, this book has received a raving review from the Mystery Forum, the best known pick up artists out there. The review came from the head of the forum himself.) This book is causing quite a stir on Amazon as readers give it Kudos everywhere. People are recommending it in reviews of all sorts of other books; like humor books, chick lit books, and pick up guides for guys. A few people who love the other books attack the recommendations as spam. Well, I'm here to set the record straight. After reading this book, I know it's not spam; it's people recommending a fantastic book. "God is a Woman: Dating Disasters" is better than all the books were people have mentioned it. The book is very, very, cleverly setup. Chick lit sucks; most of the books don't offer any real advice and just reinforce the women's behavior that hasn't been working in the first place. Pick up guides for guys are even worse. All the authors do is brag in stories about how great they are at picking up women. Read the reviews that praise those books; they all start the same "So-and-so is my god! He's so awesome!" There's no real advice in the books. ("Mystery Method" is an exception but I don't find much of it to be useful for the women I want to meet.) The guys that need the advice walk away thinking "I could never do that. I could never say that to a woman." So reading the book was pointless.
There are some reviews here that knock this book for not having stories about long-term relationships, saying that's because the author has no substance. Those readers completely missed the point of this book, let alone the title. It's not about successful relationships; it's about disasters, failures, and blunders. It's setup where Ian uses his screwups to let us know we can all be successful. You don't feel that he is some god with inexplicable abilities to meet women; you feel that he is just like you, someone who went thru the same errors in dating but figured it all out, as he tells you exactly what he figured out. He has long-term relationships "but they don't belong in this book since they were successful." He has far more substance than most guys, turning down advances from many women "because I hate that feeling of just wanting them immediately gone when it's over and would rather be with someone I want to stay and wrap my arms around." He alludes to having successful long-term relationships.
Ian's take on flirting is a great example of dozens and dozens in this book. "Flirting is key to successful dating and picking up women...I used to suck at flirting." He goes on to describe how he got good and tells guys how they can practice flirting and get good at it. He says that all of his long, successful relationships started with conversations that contained mostly flirting thru the initial meeting and the entire first date. Talking about things when you meet or on a first date like what you do or how many siblings you have, makes things dull fast and should be "saved for phone calls between dates or future dates." So, we know Ian's had long, good relationships (all his exes and he are still good friends, how many of us can say that?) and we have a great tip about how flirting played a huge role in getting those going and a blueprint for flirting ourselves.
The whole book is like that, funny and full of insightful, fresh advice. Reading this book to read about long-term, successful relationships is like going to an Italian restaurant and then being upset because you can't order Chinese food. Books about long-term relationships don't tell you how to get in them, how to date, or how to meet people. Again, they are pointless. Ian tells you how he's used his advice to get a date, get laid, or date someone, but he doesn't get into great detail about those successful stories because that's not the point of the book! DAH! He says that in the opening, which you can read here on Amazon by clicking "More Editorial Reviews." You walk away from this book feeling like "Hey, I can do this! He's been in far worse, more embarrassing situations than me and he makes it work now. So can I!"
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31 of 40 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Dull, Mistitled Book, November 21, 2007
This review is from: God Is a Woman: Dating Disasters (Paperback)
First, I found the book pretty dull and not funny. (Sorry Ian.)
Secondly, this is not a book about dating disasters--it's a book about pick-up/hook-up disasters. It's a gentler, more palatable version of the pick-up artist genre, and discusses the author's ten-plus year history of casual sex and one night stands.
I actually found the book somewhat disconcerting because the author uses such a reasonable, "nice guy" tone to discuss some pretty shallow, callous behavior.
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24 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Stick to comedy, Ian..., June 23, 2007
This review is from: God Is a Woman: Dating Disasters (Paperback)
This book was a waste...I couldn't finish it.
Ian Coburn should stick to comedy. Though this book has a few funny quips and a couple of good tips, it is mostly just war stories from his dating life. 80% of the stories are pretty dull. I found his perspective pretty juvenile. Are we really looking to a guy who wooes woman back to his futon as an authority on dating??? God helps us (whether god is a she, he, or otherwise).
Ian Coburn is also very full of himself, which I found painful. He constantly pats himself on the back for his "enlightened" approach to women. "When I'm out...I'm trying to meet the one woman I'm attracted to the most. It demonstrates that I'm not interested in a women's T&A." Puh-lease. Someone get this guy a medal. Or..."Cedric the Entertainer, Richard Jeni, and Robert Schimmel...were very cool and liked my act a lot." Don't hurt your arm patting your back, buddy.
Whether you are looking for some great stories or a book with some dating tips, your time is better spent elsewhere.
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