Live Like a Vulcan, Love Like a Wookiee, Laugh Like a Hobbit

A big thank you to NetGalley and BenBella Books for sending an advance copy of that book!


“Live like a Vulcan, Love like a Wookie, Laugh like a Hobbit” follows the adventure of a geek after a day at a comic con wherein his search for the rest, he found a bar with an elder, a Vulcan, a Wookie and a Hobbit. Our five protagonists will go through life lessons they learned from Pop Culture. They’ll talk about the toxicity of certain fandoms to how we should not judge people without knowing their past.

I really liked that book, first because I am a huge nerd and I had consumed and love most of the shows or books they talked about. When covid was not a thing I used to go to 2 conventions every year and it was an amazing experience meeting people that share my interests.
The philosophy part and the parallels they made between Pop Culture and our lives were very interesting and I was pleased to see that I already made some of them myself. I highlighted a lot of quotes, one of them was “ We don’t win by defeating what we hate, we win by saving the things we love”.

The only downside someone could find is that there are some mild spoilers, but I guess that it won’t be relevant as it is destined for a public more in touch with masterpieces from Pop Culture.

For me, that book deserves 5/5 stars.

Ps: I’ll probably binge watch some of the shows and movies mentioned in the near future

Live like a vulcan, love like a wookiee, laugh like a hobbit by Robb Pearlman is one of those books taht helps restoring your faith in humanity. It is delicate, funny, reading it makes you happy.
It narrates the story of a guy alone at a comic-con suddenly finding himself eating, drinking, and talking with a diversified company composed by three people dressed as a vulcan, a wookiee, and a hobbit. They get to talking and sharing a few bites and drinks, and their conversation range from the mantras each one of them lives by (live like a vulcan, love like a wookiee, and so on) to various topics such as the fear of feeling exposed and insecure a geek like them could experience when going to a comic-con.
It's a very short book, you can read it in about 2/3 hours, but as I said it is a balm for the sould. The company is variegated but every one of them is a wise person contributing to the important topics that this story eviscerates via "geek metaphors".
Recommended if you need some faith in humanity and a good laugh.

What a funny, refreshing book.

The title itself was enough to lure me in, and anyone who is into movies, books, TV shows, pop culture in general will appreciate this. There are so, so, so many references to some of the most loved characters, you're bound to get sucked in.

It's pretty short, and you can read it at once, or do it like I did, read a couple of chapters every day.

It's funny, insightful, full of great lessons from pop culture. Plenty, plenty of lovely and memorable quotes and moments that will make you wonder. It has a very hopeful, positive outlook on the world, and I loved it.

I thought that I was prepared to read this book, by virtue of the "All I need to know about life, I learned from Star Trek" poster hanging in our 'Geek Study'. After all, between me, my hubby, and our adult sons, our family fandom covers most genres, from movies to video games to books.
I was wrong. This book, it turns out, is everything I imagine could happen should I get into conversations about the geeky things we love, but were much more eloquent in our delivery. Sure, we've had conversations about the inner meanings of the different things we love, but we've never come close to the depth that Robb Pearlman's characters do.
The book is eye opening and relevant, and I feel like the main character does at the end, looking at the world of fandom with new eyes. While I did know the various things outlined in the book, having it put through the lens of an Elder, a Vulcan, a Wookie and a Hobbit makes the life lessons much more entertaining and easier to swallow.
Beyond that, the book is well written and concise, flowing nicely from start to finish.
Everyone can learn something about life from reading it.

Fast paced, short and fun read. I really enjoyed this book it was nice to understand the references and to see that every geek has learned something from these stories.

I love this book with all of my nerd heart. I felt like it was completely connectable with my brain and the way I think. The way the nerds united and connected and related. I wanted to be friends with these people. The lessons were so simple, such common sense but broke down from pop culture and it made me tear up because it was just so uplifting.


CW for mentions of HP and Hogwarts in the second half.

While it was a quick read, it was so enjoyable. Positive lessons to take away from popular culture. With how toxic some fandoms can be, this book is a great reminder of the messages & warnings found in popular culture.

I requested this book because popular culture (particularly when it references Star Trek, Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings) is very dear to my heart.
This was a pleasant and entertaining read. It had a bit of philosophizing, a lot of pop culture love, an easy way of bringing the bigger picture and metaphor of pop culture into personal relevance, and affirming reasoning.
It was short and a quick read but definitely enjoyable and engaging.

my thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!

I liked the result of this book more than I expected, as at first, I expected something more like a handbook like "The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy", but the teachings of pop culture are very well applied and there are some references that are so recent, like the Wandavision one!!!!

As someone who has attended several comic conventions during the last few years, I felt as if this book was a pretty good description of the environment one lives while attending one. Of course there are the panels, the celebrity photo-ops and autographs, the exhibitors stands to get your attention but the experience of meeting other fellow geek fans is truly important.

I enjoyed reading this book and how the author exceeded at portraying accurately how this experience is for most of us, but at the same time, using knowledge and the learning given by a plethora of pop culture properties we are familiar with. It felt truly organic having four different characters, a Vulcan, a Wookiee, a Hobbit and an Elder - or four different individuals dressed as - interacting with the author from a first-person narrative and providing their wisdom and knowledge.

When attending a con, it's common to act as the character you're dressed with. You're no longer John, an accountant from Kansas or Laura, a teacher from Illinois, you're embodied by your cosplay and that's a really nice experience. To have these four people engaging in such enriching conversation covering different topics with the author felt as if one as the reader was sitting aside them, listening to them.

And regardless the discourse that might exist in all types of fandom, I appreciated that the author acknowledge the different point of views from fans without focusing too much on it. Generally speaking, the perspective of this book is focusing on the positives rather than the negative side of the fandom. On how a person attending on its own can find themselves as part of a larger community and find kindred spirits to hang out with. And this book meets its purpose: on bringing a nice perspective on attending a con and enjoying the experience, not only the activities per se, but the people you get to meet when you go to one. And especially during these pandemic times, though con activity has restarted at a certain extent, but it's not back to pre-pandemic levels, it is quite helpful to remember and value that person-to-person experience as something worth having.

Quick and fun read. Short chapters alternating between the Vulcan. The Wookie and the Hobbit. I was laughing out loud in places. Really enjoyed this one. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

A Vulcan, a Wookie and a Hobbit walk into a bar. Sounds like the start of a really esoterica joke, right? It was the title of the book that originally drew my attention. Moderated by the one they call Elder, three cos-playing friends attending a science fiction convention finish their day in the hotel bar and enter into a conversation about life. Along the way, the adopt a young loner, also an attendee, who had only stopped for dinner. And so the reader embarks on a discussion of pop culture and the life lessons it can teach us. Sound corny? I thought so too until the first time I had to stop and take a minute to think about just what was being said. I found myself bookmarking pages, taking notes and annotating.

One of the things I really liked about the book is that the chapters are short. Each one tackles a different aspect of our everyday life and the things we can learn through a shared love of pop culture. And it's not limited to science fiction references. With references to everything from Jaws and Scooby Doo to The Lego Movie and Disney, there's something to which everyone can relate. There wasn't a single chapter of this book that didn't make me stop and think. I plan for this book to hold a prominent place on my keeper shelf.

If concern about quicksand has played a bigger part in your life than perhaps is warranted, this is a must read. This is a fun, sweet observational piece which will make sense to more people than will want to admit it.

Live Like a Vulcan, Love Like a Wookiee, Laugh Like a Hobbit: Life Lessons from Pop Culture is exactly what it sounds like: a delightful look at the life lessons we can all learn from pop culture. (And here my mom always thought I was waisting time on mindless nonsense.) Using the story of a loner at a comic con who runs into a group of cosplayers at restaurant/bar as his vehicle, Robb Pearlman does an absolutely fantastic job of using movies, books, tv shows, and even video games to explore the life lessons imparted from pop culture, referencing everything from Star Trek/Star Wars to the Avengers to Harry Potter to The Princess Bride to Dune, even going old school with Flash Gordon and the 80s cult classic Krull.
This is a short book that can easily be read in only a couple of hours but it’s enjoyable and well worth the time. And frankly as an admittedly massive geek the shear number of references, number of fandoms that Pearlman touches on is quite impressive. This also happened to be the first book from Pearlman that I’d read but I will definitely be checking out more of his work.
I’d like to thank BenBella Books, Smart Pop, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of Live Like a Vulcan, Love Like a Wookiee, Laugh Like a Hobbit: Life Lessons from Pop Culture.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/live-like-a-vulcan-love-like-a-wookiee-laugh-like-a-hobbit-robb-pearlman/1138968685?ean=9781953295828&bvnotificationId=af4a2d04-29eb-11ec-afbe-0a9b5965424d&bvmessageType=REVIEW_APPROVED&bvrecipientDomain=gmail.com#review/188607045

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2RFBO2P87A0RD/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Live Like a Vulcan, Love Like a Wookiee, Laugh Like a Hobbit is a fast paced entertaining book about life lessons seen through pop culture..
The book is setup as an ongoing conversation at a restaurant near a comic con between four friends, cosplaying as a Vulcan, Wookiee, Hobbit, and an elder, who befriend a lone attendee and together they discuss what pop culture can teach us about life. The speed round chapters give quick fire answers showing a life lesson each fandom in rapid succession the other chapters go into more detail.
Overall I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys any fandom be it movies, video games or books.

Chock full of pop culture references, nerds of all fandoms will enjoy Live Like a Vulcan, Love like a Wookiee, Laugh like a Hobbit. Set in a bar (where the poor waiter is alone and having a nervous breakdown) after a local convention, our hero stumbles upon a table of cosplayers from the local comic convention and is invited to join them. They share stories, and give life lessons built upon those stores. There are so many references! Princess Bride, Never Ending Story, Star Wars, LOTR, Star Trek, 80s console games like Donkey Kong and the Pac Man franchise, Final Fantasy, Alien, and many many more.
A great book for the nerds in your life, I really enjoyed this book. It's also pretty short, with short chapters, so it's easy to sit and read a little or the whole thing.

Book Review
Live Like Vulcan, Love Like a Wookie, Laugh Like a Hobbitt by Robb Pearlman

My inner geek is in love. Like the Fellowship of the Ring this group of fanboys have been brought together to share their wisdom… at a pub…. In cosplay. Their gift for gab knows no bounds- they discuss everything and anything and it always comes back to the lessons learned from their favourite characters from their favourites fandoms. Filled with humour and pop culture references This will fill the void of missing out on Fan Expo and Comic Con.

For lovers of fandoms, cosplay, and all things geek. Gave me Hitchhiker vibes- light and fluffy on the outside but there is depth to the content of these friends conversations and their different outlooks and opinions on life in general.

ThaNks to @netgalley and @benbellabooks for my gifted copy in return for an honest review

This book warmed my heart.
I don’t have much to say... if you recognize all the ‘characters’ from the title, just read it!