Shauna Moerke is…

Hello, my name is HR Minion, and I’m… a Big Geek. (Hi HR Minion!). When I was a child it started out small, I read a lot so I often found myself in different sections of the local library, reading books beyond my age. This searching lead me to Science Fiction and Fantasy novels and it was all down hill from there. I’ll just say it, Sci-Fi is a gateway genre into Geek culture. Soon, I was gaming, watching Japanese animation, reading manga (Japanese comics), and listening to Indie music. I kid, but I’m proud of my geeky interests. I also think that most people are geeks about something. Whether it’s sports, history, or antique irons; if you have a hobby you really enjoy, you probably are a geek about it.

What does this have to do with this blog? It’s context, duh. I mentioned I’m a big manga geek, right? Well, I had heard about this upcoming career guide that was presented in manga format. Needless to say, I had to check it out. So here for your enjoyment, is my first book review on this blog.

The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The last career guide you’ll ever need, written by Daniel H. Pink (A whole new mind) with art by Rob Ten Pas (A winner of Tokyopop’s annual Rising Stars of Manga contest).

Don’t let the comic aspect of this book fool you, the advice in this book is not a joke. A quick and interesting read, this book aims to convey 6 career secrets meant to help the reader succeed in a career they actually want and enjoy. When it uses source material from Clifton and Buckingham’s Now, Discover your Strengths and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow you know they are leading readers in the right direction. In the story, frustrated and confused accountant Johnny Bunko comes across some magical chopsticks that bring forth a very interesting career counselor. Using humor and a little magic, the 6 secrets are revealed and explained. By utilizing these lessons, Johnny is soon on his way to a fulfilling and successful career.

The 6 secrets are: 1. There is no plan, 2. Think strengths, not weaknesses, 3. It’s not about you, 4. Persistence trumps talent, 5. Make excellent mistakes, and 6. Leave an imprint. You’ll have to get the book to learn more about them, and I do recommend getting the book.

Overall, I thought the book was informative and innovative. Both the art and advice are well done. I think it will grab the attention of the people that need it the most and offer them some useful advice they probably aren’t getting anywhere else. So who do I think could benefit from this book? There are 3 main groups: High schoolers starting to plan their future, Disaffected college students (I love Despair, Inc.) who don’t know what to major in or do after college, and recent college graduates whose first job isn’t what they expected it to be. These are the groups I feel will most likely benefit from its advice and be attracted to its format. If you are an older worker whose already in their 3rd or 4th career, you won’t gain anything by it, you’ve probably already read this advice before in other business books.

I have a cousin who will graduate from high school next year. This book will be part of my present to him. I think that’s the best endorsement anyone could give.