Mortified: Love Is a Battlefield [Paperback]

David Nadelberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 2008

Relive the angst.

From starter girlfriends to escapist fantasies to delusional attempts to stand out amongst their peers, Mortified: Love Is a Battlefield revisits the boundlessly embarrassing topic of childhood love, uncovering priceless artifacts of authentic teen angst that tell of unrequited crushes, awkward hookups, odd celebrity infatuations, and all manner of romantic catastrophes. The now older (and allegedly wiser) authors of these letters, lyrics, and journals bravely share their shame in stories that range from sweetly hopeful to borderline psychotic.

Everyone who ever obsessed over whether that guy or girl in algebra class liked them, or, y'know, liked them liked them, will relish this funny and touching valentine to our collective past

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If Schadenfreude was an Olympic sport, then this book would be its illegal performance-enhancing drug. The baring of souls is seldom this funny or touching. David Nadelberg is the Pied Piper of pre-adult pain." -- Paul Feig, creator of Freaks and Geeks and author of Superstud and Kick Me

"In a world where people are obsessed with Google and MySpace, you'd think a book exposing the private love letters and diary entries of strangers would be anticlimactic, but David Nadelberg has compiled the best and, well, most mortifying into a riveting book." -- Jane

About the Author

Mortified is the creation of David Nadelberg--a writer/producer/angstologist living in Los Angeles, the official town of public humiliation. Since 2002, he has sifted through hundreds of journals belonging to strangers and edited them into comedic pieces. He has written and produced numerous TV pilots for places UPN, VH1 and Comedy Central that were so amazing, they never even aired.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Gallery Books; Original edition (January 8, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416954791
• ISBN-13: 978-1416954798
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #594,185 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born. Then I got older.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Compared to the first volume, this one was so-so., March 26, 2008

By 

M. Mistretta "book nerd." (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mortified: Love Is a Battlefield (Paperback)

I enjoyed reading "Love is a Battlefield," but it lacked a certain something compared to the first Mortified volume. With one or two exceptions, the majority of the pieces in the second collection are a bit flat and, well, un-mortifying. This collection has the distinct feel of being a selection of Nadelberg's bestest friends' journals, rather than the no-holds-barred, all-comers-considered, hilariously embarrassing content found in the first book. Reading it, I got the feeling that most of the contributors must know Nadelberg in some way, and that this book was more of a clique effort, rife with inside jokes that are funnier to the friends who know them, than a true dissection of the best teen journaling to be found, appealing to all readers.

Many of the journal entries barely stuck to the theme of teen love. Many more were just...diaries. There was nothing particularly mortifying within them, unless it was rather blase' descriptions of Bon Jovi t-shirts. I found myself less than impressed with several of the contributions.

I still enjoyed this one, but I doubt I'll re-read it as I do the original volume. And I certainly never laughed out loud reading this one, and never had to read just one more entry to my husband. This volume lacks much of the blushing shame of its predecessor, but is still worth reading once.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Mortified, February 9, 2008

By 

nightprose "McGuffy Ann" (The Great Lakes, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mortified: Love Is a Battlefield (Paperback)

"Mortified 2---Love is a Battlefield" picks right up where we left off in the first book ("Mortified"). Baby Boomers will mostly identify as these stories are in the time frame of their youth. However, I think we all can relate to the embarrassment and intensity of our first love & crushes.
David Nadelberg has a knack for taking us back there and making us remember how it was---the good, the bad, and yes, even the ugly. Even now, as it was then, it is bittersweet. I look forward to more from David Nadelberg.I like his style and his tenacity, taking us back where we were so vulnerable yet so sure---our youth.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A walk down memory lane..., March 29, 2008

By 

Jeanne L. Thompson "JeannieT" (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mortified: Love Is a Battlefield (Paperback)

...barefoot of course. And memory lane is a gravel road. But then, there's that incredibly satisfying feeling of standing in the grass looking back on your stroll down memory lane, how painful it was and how good it feels now not to still be walking down it.

Buy this book. Trust me. You will be entertained, embarrassed and want to contact that love of your life from 7th grade.

Well, not that last part probably, but definitely the first two.