 “Who Are You People?: A Personal Journey into the Heart of Fanatical Passion in America” by Shari Caudron
Barricade Books, 288 pages, $15
Denver writer Shari Caudron has hit the national radar with a nonfiction book that examines an interesting subject.
No,
she didn’t trek across the Afghanistan desert post 9-11, log time in a
foreign brothel, or go undercover with religious fanatics.
What she did was cast
a probing eye toward people we see all the time, possibly at work or at
family gatherings, who have interests that arouse a mixture of
curiosity and embarrassment.
Caudron has examined
the segment of our population often assessed as "geeks;" those among us
who become so embroiled in a pursuit (usually one that staves off the
real world) that it alienates friends, shoves a wedge into social
interactions and even causes friction in stable marriages.
For this book,
Caudron followed and analyzed people with interests in: collecting
Barbie dolls, ice fishing, pigeon racing, and board games; as well as
enthusiasts of the old Mayberry sitcoms, rabid fans of pretty-boy
singer Josh Groban (me neither), science fiction aficionados, furries
(holy shit!), record collectors and tornado chasers.
Yes, for some among
us the trivial rises to an almost religious level, which Caudron
documents sublimely. Apart from her investigative journalism of the
aforementioned, though, Caudron begins to question why she doesn’t have
any passion on par with spending every evening watching “Mayberry
R.F.D.” reruns in order to bone up for the annual trivia contest.
This constitutes the
part of the book that falls under the “personal journey” label. It also
represents a stumble in an otherwise commendable study.
Truth be told,
Caudron’s exploration is pretty entertaining and well written. The
segment on New York pigeon racers is intriguing, and the chapter on ice
fishing gives insight into an obscure Colorado hobby. However, most
readers likely would scratch their heads at the Groban enthusiasts, who
show a greater devotion to their idol than many Deadheads did with
Jerry Garcia.
Caudron does
unintentionally portray some of her subjects as freaks. The furries,
people who dress up full-body as animal creatures, almost universally
cross the line into freakishness. Despite the testimonials, I’m sure
few would disagree with this judgment.
Near the end of her
book, Caudron writes about “how willing Americans are to embrace their
passions and broadcast them to the world, regardless of what that world
might think. Geeks, in a word, have become chic.”
Not sure about that, but Caudron definitely is onto something.
While hobbies are
common, most among us do not embrace a nonprofessional pursuit strongly
enough to, say, travel cross-country to attend a convention. It’s odd
that Caudron finds herself the misfit for not having such a fanatical
interest, when in reality she falls comfortably into the mainstream.
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