The Positivity of Awkwardness
The title immediately indicates that the author considers herself to be awkward in social situations. This hints at the book being yet another memoir that serves to elevate geekiness to a desirable attribute. It’s been done, however, and needs to stop and, fortunately, the book does not attempt to the millionth contributor to a cause won long ago. Instead, awkward really does refer to being awkward in the sense of behavior that is not lovably geeky, but genuinely embarrassing. Ah, but there is a method to this madness. She is not seeking celebrity redemption for her youth embarrassments, but rather is conveying the message that those awkward moments of embarrassment—even to the point of utter humiliation—should not be ostracized from one’s memory, but purposely revisited time and again in order to learn something from them which will improve one’s life in future.
Being Black in America
Throughout the book are guides to dealing with the unique idiosyncrasies isolated to the black experience in America. For instance, “ABG Guide: Connecting with Other Blacks” offers a helpful list explaining that, despite what many people who now have January 6th as a new holiday to celebrate may think, there is a vast gamut of “blackness” that must be navigated. The guide offers descriptions of useful advice for dealing with “the 10% Black,” “the Ambitious Black,” “the Insecure Black” and several others. Much the same approach is taken with advice for dealing with the distinctive problems of dealing with hair as a black person or, more specifically, the stupid questions or advice that are routinely asked or offered.
How the Internet Changed the World
An undercurrent running throughout the length of the narrative is the development of the internet with a specific focus on how it changed the world forever for people like the author who would otherwise likely would never have found the opportunity to become somehow capable of writing this very book. The track of this theme actually starts back in mid-1990’s before most personal computers even had the realistic ability to connect to the internet. From the originating point of AOL, the author’s narrative traces her relationship to the development of YouTube and social media sites like Twitter as the chain which links her from being an awkward teen playing text-based games by typing commands into DOS to using her YouTube web series to make the leap to creating programming on HBO and appearing in theatrical films.
