Nick Greene's HOW TO WATCH SOCCER LIKE A GENIUS In-Store Event

Join us at Mrs. Dalloway's Bookstore on Tuesday, May 12 when Berkeley author Nick Greene comes to the store to present his new book How to Watch Soccer Like a Genius: What Architects, Stuntwomen, Paleoanthropologists, and Computer Scientists Reveal About the World's Game. Greene will be joined in conversation by Brian Watt and will sign copies of his book after the presentation.

to preorder a copy of How to Watch Soccer Like a Genius.

After reading this fun book, you’ll never look at soccer the same way again.

In How to Watch Soccer Like a Genius, Nick Greene calls on a turf manager, an expert on color theory, and a landscape historian to understand the field itself, a paleoanthropologist to talk kicking, and an Anglican priest to explain schisms—how American football, soccer, and rugby could all develop from the field games of rowdy 19th-century British schoolboys.

Greene delves deep into what defines the game, how it developed, and what happens during a match’s 90 minutes (and then some). His expert commentators include a domino toppler, a developmental neuroscientist, an art historian, a civil engineer, and more.

On the surface, soccer seems like the simplest of games: one ball, two teams, two goals, and (preferably) some grass. There’s a reason it’s the first team sport little kids learn to play. But the closer you look, the more you dig into the game’s history, the more infinitely complex and complex the picture becomes.

NICK GREENE is an acclaimed writer celebrated for his inventive approach to sports and culture. He is the author of How to Watch Basketball Like a Genius, a book praised for its witty, interdisciplinary exploration of basketball. Greene’s work has appeared in Slate, The Washington Post, and Chicago magazine. He has covered everything from NBA and NFL analysis to quirky lifestyle experiments—such as riding the entire New York subway in one day and negotiating his internet bill using Sun Tzu’s The Art of War.

BRIAN WATT is KQED's morning radio news anchor.  In his ten years with KQED, his work has been recognized with awards by the San Francisco Press Club, Society of Professional Journalists of Northern California and the Radio Television Digital News Association.  Prior to KQED, Brian worked as a Reporter for KPCC in Los Angeles and a producer at Marketplace. During eight years at KPCC, he covered business and economics and won several awards, including  the  Los Angeles Press Club’s 2008 first-place award for Business and Financial Reporting, Broadcast. Brian holds degrees in theater from Yale University and the Sorbonne, and has worked as an actor in France, Italy, Brazil, Hungary and Hollywood. He appeared in a few television shows, including The West Wing, Judging Amy and The District.

THIS EVENT is free but registration is requested. Registration ends at 6:00 pm on May 12.

BECAUSE SEATING is limited, please register only if you plan to attend.

DUE TO SPACE limitations, we may not be able to accommodate every person at an event, so early registration is encouraged.

WALK-INS will be accommodated only if space allows.

WE ASK that attendees arrive between 6:45 and 7:00 PM for the event.

PLEASE leave your non-support companion animals at home.

OUR shared restrooms are not accessible after 6:30 PM, please plan accordingly.

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