Playing with the Guys

“This is a tour de force fusion of gender studies, game studies, and critical theory. As with the very best, it transcends the dry label of ‘academic book’ and instead operates more as a detective novel. It asks the reader to follow a trail of evidence, puzzles, clues, and consider more than a few red herrings the author-as-detective picks apart in meticulous, incisive style. The reader is led, piece-by-piece, to frequently surprising, always insightful deductions. The rigour Professor Ouellette demonstrates in dissecting and analysing masculinity is in and of itself praiseworthy, but what really leaps towards the reader is the original and provocative thought accompanying such precision. Ouellette performs a dance between various disciplines, thinkers and concepts, offering ways of thinking through and with masculinity that feel wholly fresh and novel...a thrilling, timely read.”—Steven Conway, Swinburne University of Technology
“This book provides a much needed framework for thinking about constructions of masculinity in media and game studies--balancing much needed critiques with larger questions about the generation and transmission of notions of the masculine.”—Josh Call, professor of English, Grand View University
“Recommended”—Choice