This isnt some rushed-to-market, flimsy paperback that reads like it was written over a long weekend. Theres real depth here, of the type rarely, if ever, found in a humor book. It seems possible that, were Aiello not so funny, all jokes could be removed and the book could actually function as a serious anthropological survey. As it is, though, the jokes are mindbendingly intelligent, the detail is incredibly thick, and the targets are caught squarely in the authors crosshairs. And dont let the overused term "hipster" fool you, this isnt lazily observed description of downtown slackers. On the contrary, the book manages to skewer Frat Guys, Sorority Girls, the Literati, Models, Urban Moms, and other unexpected types while other so-called "similar" books are content with tossing off a few unoriginal, slightly humorous descriptions of whats going on currently in Brooklyn. This covers the entire country, and does so admirably. Real sweat has been poured over this thing. This is the kind of book youd cite in the bibliography of a sociological term paper, exept its damn, damn funny to boot.
Living in the hipster mecca of the US (Williamsburg, Brooklyn) I spend much of my time co-habitating with nearly all of the varities of hipsters included in this book. With the choking level of "irony" floating around nowadays its hugely refreshing to read a book that is a genuinely funny, cheerily snarky, insightful look at urban subcultures. Aiello is very well-informed about his subjects and is therefore able to create satire that is bitingly witty and true. You find yourself nodding, laughing, and (if you happen to be, or have ever been, part of these subcultures yourself), blushing. A securely tounge-in-cheek, intelligent, fun read. Highly recommended!
The similar natures of the reviews written here lead me to believe that Josh Aiello is pulling a Bebe Buell and reviewing his own book over and over again, giving it five stars again and again from different "readers" in various states. Nice try, but this book definitely misses the mark. I sort of feel badly that it had to follow the publication of the Hipster Handbook, which is WAY more accurate and WAY funnier than The Field Guide to the Urban Hipster. Ive read both, and while The Hipster Handbook absolutely positively nails it, the Field Guide to the Urban Hipster feels like it was written by my sixty year old father trying to be funny about kids today and picking up only about 20% of the general gist of the thing
