Brad Gooch

Gooch takes a philosophical, quasi-spiritual approach to dating, applying lessons learned from the Greek gods to his romantic interactions with men. But the goal of this volume, which is part memoir, part mythology lesson and part self-help guide, is not simply to empower readers to find social success. Rather, Gooch (Finding the Boyfriend Within) holds that self-examination and study of Greek wisdom can have an effect on the whole self-and that a better social life is a happy by-product. After an introduction that attempts to explain the relationship between the Greek gods and gay dating, the book launches into seven chapters; six examine the traits and lessons of particular gods-Apollo, Dionysus, Hermes, Hephaestus, Eros and Zeus-and one looks at the wisdom of Socrates. The author describes the gods and their beliefs, and offers a few themed exercises for each. Erotic exercise #4, for example, has readers: "List your current crushes. If you draw a blank, you can include crushes from movies, sports, or TV." Hermenuetic exercise #1 urges readers to "Create a new workout program." The lessons and exercises can be thought provoking.