By Sara Pintilie/entertainment editor
The Automatic 2nd Date (1.5 stars)
The first time through The Automatic 2nd Date, I couldn’t stop laughing. The self-help book, written by Victorya Michaels Rogers, reads like June Cleaver’s guide to dating.
But to be fair, I surpassed my feminist giggles and read the book again.
On second glance, I still couldn’t take it seriously, but her advice for the reader, not the date in question, is good, not groundbreaking, but interesting.
On the plus side, the book is easy to read. It is written less like a how to and more like something a girl’s friend would say.
The paperback basically breaks down into short bursts of information on what to do on the first date to—all together now—get an automatic second date.
When the author talks about being “the magnetic you,” she is helpful with tips on boosting confidence, dressing fabulously and even flirting properly—again, nothing to alert the media with but still moderately interesting.
Rogers pulls references from many movies, which is never a bad thing, to explain her dating scenarios.
The main problem with this book arises when the potential second date enters the picture.
Rogers switches her tone from “be the magnetic you” to “be the magnetic you he wants.”
Here is exhibit A.
“ All you have to do, after you’ve got that boy to show up, is make this first date all about him rather than you.”
And my personal favorite nugget of wisdom found in the book—“He will pay (unless you asked him out, and then it’s not really a date, anyway).”
Rogers goes through a date step-by-step even with lists of potential questions to ask him. They are either mundane or bizarre, but, hey, you never know when the knowledge if your guy is “a hunt-and-peck guy or a serious keyboarder” will come in handy.
And if you miss the part on whether to wear flats or not, don’t fret. She recaps her “wisdom” at the end of every chapter.
The Automatic 2nd Date wants to be a serious date book, but unfortunately, it is outdated and, ultimately, falls flat.
