You and “Mr. Right” exchanged numbers last Saturday night at the beach and now, two weeks later you’ve only heard from him once (that night he was wasted begging you to come over).
What happened? You thought everything was great.
The reason? “He’s just not that into you.”
That is the advice that former Sex and the City writer, Greg Behrendt, gives to women who find themselves in the predicament described above.
In the newly released book titled, “He’s Just Not that Into You,” co-wrote with Liz Tucillo also of Sex and the City, readers are presented with “the no-excuses truth to understanding guys.”
“It’s just a wake-up call,” said Tucillo in a CNN article. “It’s just a clear-as-a-bell, funny, simple wake-up call.”
According to a Fairfield Borders Bookshop manager, almost 200 copies have been sold in their store recently. Most of the customers, however, have been women who saw the book on Oprah.
It seems that many people on campus, students and faculty, know about the book.
Dorothea Braginsky, professor of psychology here at Fairfield, thinks that the whole premise of the book is offensive.
“It is interesting to get a man’s take on things, but it is one man’s take on things,” said Braginsky.
According to Braginsky, human relationships are more complex than this book makes them out to be and students need to realize that when reading it.
“Gals who are reading this book are doing a disservice to themselves and lining the pockets of the authors,” said Braginsky.
Professor Sharon Abbott of the sociology department agrees with Braginski when it comes to this book.
“I always find these things so horrifying,” said Abbott. “What amazes me is how desperate these women are for information about how to date.”
The ongoing battle of men versus women in the dating arena is very real. Fairfield men and women feel very divided over the issue, the men tending to side with Beherndt and the females with Tucillo.
Eric Merner ’06, after reading an excerpt from the book, said, “It’s kind of funny how right the guy who writes this really is.”
Surprisingly, one Fairfield female agreed.
“I know the book is harsh, but I like hearing a guy’s perspective,” said Coleen Washington ’06.
Some Fairfield females, however, are outraged by some of the things Behrendt had to say.
“I think he’s just trying to make money,” said Jaclyn Caputi ’06. “All he does is make women look stupid and the only advice he offers is, ‘He’s just not that into you’.”
Jaclyn Drake ’06 agreed.
“I hate how no excuse is a good excuse; if you just dismiss every guy that steps out of line once, you’ll be pretty lonely, because guys tend to do that,” said Drake.
Regardless, most students agree that the book does, in fact, parallel college hook-up scenes, from the guy’s behavior to the girls’ constant analyses of these types of situations.
“It happens all the time,” said Katie Giusti ’06. “People get drunk, hook up, and then all the girls end up in Barone on Sunday morning trying to figure out what went wrong.”
The book, organized in a “he says, she says” fashion, has exploded in the media. According to Tracy van Straaten, executive director of publicity at Simon and Schuster (the publishing company), the book, which was released on September 1 and still appears on the NY Times bestseller list, is already in its fourteenth printing, with 1.2 million copies available.
According to van Straaten, the book has gained national acclaim and the authors have appeared on several shows including 20/20, The Today Show, and Oprah.
“It [the book] was selling well even before the publicity,” said van Straaten. “But the authors’ appearance on the Oprah show really made it explode.”
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