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What Would Buffy Do? The Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide
What Would Buffy Do? explores the fascinating spiritual, religious, and mythological ideas of television's hit series Buffy the Vampire Slayer --from apocalypse and sacrifice to self-reliance, redemption, and the need for humor when fighting our spiritual battles.
206 pages, Paperback
First published April 30, 2004
11 people are currently reading
488 people want to read
About the author
Jana Riess
26 books92 followersJana Riess is the author, co-author, or editor of many books, including:
"The Next Mormons: How Millennials Are Changing the LDS Church"
"The Prayer Wheel: A Daily Guide to Renewing Your Faith with a Rediscovered Spiritual Practice"
"Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor"
"The Twible: All the Chapters of the Bible in 140 Characters or Less . . . . Now with 68% More Humor!"
She is a senior columnist for Religion News Service and holds degrees in religion from Wellesley College and Princeton Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. in American religious history from Columbia University. She speaks often to media about issues pertaining to religion in America.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
June 19, 2022
The writing is interesting, but probably more timely when read right after publishing instead of after all the news surrounding Whedon and Nicky. A revised edition would be interesting.
June 14, 2011
Jana Riess takes an academic look at the spirituality of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, using the stories and style of everyone's favorite vampire slaying heroine to explore personal spirituality, the friends who help us (and, hopefully, are helped by us) on our spiritual journeys, the mentors who shape us and the quest for redemption when we come up wanting.
An interesting read, it unfortunately rambled at times. An observant viewer has probably already reached all the same conclusions from watching the show. Joss Whedon always did a great job of expressing himself and most of his points played out of the screen pretty succinctly. That's not to say that there aren't some useful insights and some different perspectives, but they're spread thin at times and the book has a tendency to repeat itself.
The Guide at the end gives a brief "nutshell" synopsis of the spiritual themes of each season and there's a similar breakdown of the major characters from the show. These, though, had a tendency to feel forced.
Worthwhile for a diehard Buffy fan as yet another way to view the show, I don't know how much it would hold the attention of the casual viewer. A condensed version, perhaps, but without already being invested in the characters and their own individual journeys, there's just too much here to keep sifting through.
An interesting read, it unfortunately rambled at times. An observant viewer has probably already reached all the same conclusions from watching the show. Joss Whedon always did a great job of expressing himself and most of his points played out of the screen pretty succinctly. That's not to say that there aren't some useful insights and some different perspectives, but they're spread thin at times and the book has a tendency to repeat itself.
The Guide at the end gives a brief "nutshell" synopsis of the spiritual themes of each season and there's a similar breakdown of the major characters from the show. These, though, had a tendency to feel forced.
Worthwhile for a diehard Buffy fan as yet another way to view the show, I don't know how much it would hold the attention of the casual viewer. A condensed version, perhaps, but without already being invested in the characters and their own individual journeys, there's just too much here to keep sifting through.
September 28, 2008
What can I say? My favorie TV show actually has merit and it's been written about in book form. It's not necessary to see the series to read the book, but I can seriously recommend watching the entire series, too. I still miss the writing on this show. Nothing else has quite lived up to it, although Lost has come very close.
February 13, 2025
I'll call this 3.5 stars. why on earth goodreads can't add a half star I don't know.
I have and have read several books about buffy and I have another to read after this one. I feel like the title is a bit misleading. I would have used the word moral rather than the word spiritual, and it's not buffy herself as a guide but the morals championed in the tv series as a whole. it discusses themes of self-sacrifice, change, mortality, anger, humor, friendship, spiritual mentors, forgiveness, consequences/karma, the shadow self, and redemption.
as I'm reading books from my TBR shelf, I ask myself if I'm going to keep the book. in the first half of this I thought probably not. it just didn't seem to be saying much. the second half won me over, at least for now. there were quotes from various sources - the bible, shakespeare, spiritual writers, etc. - on the sides of some of the pages, and some of those were really good. "let us not grow weary of doing what is right" seems apropos at the moment.
in general, the book pulls out the values of self-sacrifice, friendship, redemption, and accepting the darkness inside yourself from the show. being concerned with the battle between good and evil, heroes and demons, it is obviously a show with a moral point of view, as well as some nuance, grey areas, human failure. she generally pulls good examples to make her points.
at the end there is a season guide and character guide season by season, which the author seems to provide in case someone is reading the book who is not familiar with the show. I don't know why someone would bother, but both of those were very well done. there is an interview with eliza dushku, which I guess was a coup for the author but doesn't really add much. the book in general is pretty low budget looking, there are photos of actors from the series inside, which again don't add much. I'm probably due for a rewatch of buffy but in the meantime I enjoyed revisiting episodes through this book.
I have and have read several books about buffy and I have another to read after this one. I feel like the title is a bit misleading. I would have used the word moral rather than the word spiritual, and it's not buffy herself as a guide but the morals championed in the tv series as a whole. it discusses themes of self-sacrifice, change, mortality, anger, humor, friendship, spiritual mentors, forgiveness, consequences/karma, the shadow self, and redemption.
as I'm reading books from my TBR shelf, I ask myself if I'm going to keep the book. in the first half of this I thought probably not. it just didn't seem to be saying much. the second half won me over, at least for now. there were quotes from various sources - the bible, shakespeare, spiritual writers, etc. - on the sides of some of the pages, and some of those were really good. "let us not grow weary of doing what is right" seems apropos at the moment.
in general, the book pulls out the values of self-sacrifice, friendship, redemption, and accepting the darkness inside yourself from the show. being concerned with the battle between good and evil, heroes and demons, it is obviously a show with a moral point of view, as well as some nuance, grey areas, human failure. she generally pulls good examples to make her points.
at the end there is a season guide and character guide season by season, which the author seems to provide in case someone is reading the book who is not familiar with the show. I don't know why someone would bother, but both of those were very well done. there is an interview with eliza dushku, which I guess was a coup for the author but doesn't really add much. the book in general is pretty low budget looking, there are photos of actors from the series inside, which again don't add much. I'm probably due for a rewatch of buffy but in the meantime I enjoyed revisiting episodes through this book.
November 19, 2019
An interesting way to look at Buffy. My main complaint is that the only people who would read such a book are ardent Buffy fans, and she feels the need to explain a lot of things even a relatively casual fan would know.
June 21, 2022
Only started reading this because I liked the title.
I got more out of it then I thought!
I got more out of it then I thought!
September 9, 2025
What can I say? A guilty pleasure.
August 13, 2016
I really enjoyed this book.
As both a Christian and a Buffy fan I have sometimes find these two things to be at odds, not usually in my mind but in other people's. Riess' book was perfect for that situation because it looked at some of the themes in Christianity that can be seen throughout the show.
One of the things I loved is the idea of Jesus seen in Xander in the finale of Season Six.
In that episode Willow has gone all black haired and veiny due to the death of Tara. She went out on a vengeance trip, and killed Warren. Her magic levels allowed her to feel everyone's pain in the whole world and this led to her decided to end the world.
Buffy cannot stop her.
Xander, her best friend, who happens to be working as a carpenter at the time, comes to her as she begins ending the world. He puts himself in the way of the green blasts of energy she is shooting, bringing pain upon himself.
She tells him to get out of the way but he says if the world is going to end wherelse would he be and tells her he loves her.
He loves her as a scary, world ending Willow and as a little girl who broke the yellow crayon Willow. Each time he tells her he loves her, her destructive powers lessen. Eventually she collapses into her arms and her head turns red again.
What a picture of Jesus this is. The carpenter who saves the world through unconditional love, putting himself in harms way. Like Jesus, in Season Seven we see Xander is left with scars from his encounter.
It's illustrations like that, and insights into the show that make this book great.
The one negative I see is that there is an interview with Eliza Dushku, and although it is a cool thing to read, it is pointless in comparison to the rest of the book; though there are obvious attempts to fit the two together.
As both a Christian and a Buffy fan I have sometimes find these two things to be at odds, not usually in my mind but in other people's. Riess' book was perfect for that situation because it looked at some of the themes in Christianity that can be seen throughout the show.
One of the things I loved is the idea of Jesus seen in Xander in the finale of Season Six.
In that episode Willow has gone all black haired and veiny due to the death of Tara. She went out on a vengeance trip, and killed Warren. Her magic levels allowed her to feel everyone's pain in the whole world and this led to her decided to end the world.
Buffy cannot stop her.
Xander, her best friend, who happens to be working as a carpenter at the time, comes to her as she begins ending the world. He puts himself in the way of the green blasts of energy she is shooting, bringing pain upon himself.
She tells him to get out of the way but he says if the world is going to end wherelse would he be and tells her he loves her.
He loves her as a scary, world ending Willow and as a little girl who broke the yellow crayon Willow. Each time he tells her he loves her, her destructive powers lessen. Eventually she collapses into her arms and her head turns red again.
What a picture of Jesus this is. The carpenter who saves the world through unconditional love, putting himself in harms way. Like Jesus, in Season Seven we see Xander is left with scars from his encounter.
It's illustrations like that, and insights into the show that make this book great.
The one negative I see is that there is an interview with Eliza Dushku, and although it is a cool thing to read, it is pointless in comparison to the rest of the book; though there are obvious attempts to fit the two together.
June 10, 2015
A few more thoughts here: http://allthebookblognamesaretaken.bl...
I should begin by saying I am not what you would refer to as a 'casual fan' of BtVS. I am one of THOSE; I know every episode name, can recite them in order (I have a tendency though to block out parts of season 6, forgive me), can quote the show verbatim, and - somewhat embarrassingly - in high school I stayed home 'sick' one day just to catch a radio interview of David Boreanaz on the Dave Ryan in the Morning Show on KDWB. Yes, I skipped a whole day of school for a 10-15 minutes interview. Years later, Mom admitted she knew I wasn't sick, and why I stayed home. My mom rules.
Okay, now that the craziness that is me when it comes to this show is clear...it'll be somewhat understandable why I could only rate four stars - as a stickler for correctness, some of the quotes and their context were just not quite right. That being said, the message of the book is still clear, and a valuable one. I just am very particular when it comes to a show and characters I loved so much (and who are we kidding, I STILL love Angel.)
I feel like this might be geared more toward fans similar to me, or at least those with more than a passing interest. The casual fan may not even recall some of the situations discussed, though many are obvious and the 'big ones'.
All in all, I definitely recommend this one.
I should begin by saying I am not what you would refer to as a 'casual fan' of BtVS. I am one of THOSE; I know every episode name, can recite them in order (I have a tendency though to block out parts of season 6, forgive me), can quote the show verbatim, and - somewhat embarrassingly - in high school I stayed home 'sick' one day just to catch a radio interview of David Boreanaz on the Dave Ryan in the Morning Show on KDWB. Yes, I skipped a whole day of school for a 10-15 minutes interview. Years later, Mom admitted she knew I wasn't sick, and why I stayed home. My mom rules.
Okay, now that the craziness that is me when it comes to this show is clear...it'll be somewhat understandable why I could only rate four stars - as a stickler for correctness, some of the quotes and their context were just not quite right. That being said, the message of the book is still clear, and a valuable one. I just am very particular when it comes to a show and characters I loved so much (and who are we kidding, I STILL love Angel.)
I feel like this might be geared more toward fans similar to me, or at least those with more than a passing interest. The casual fan may not even recall some of the situations discussed, though many are obvious and the 'big ones'.
All in all, I definitely recommend this one.
July 7, 2013
455 - 2013
Beberapa tahun lalu, aku menemukan DVD BtVS Season 1-7 di ITC Kuningan, dan sempat terkena demam seri ini dengan menonton stripping semua episodenya, dan menonton ulang berkali-kali. Aku juga sempat tergila-gila pada Spike, padahal dulu waktu serial ini diputar di RCTI sukanya sama Angel. Mungkin karena dulu belum sempat melihat transformasi karakter Spike dari pure evil menjadi lebih manusiawi.
Buku ini membahas BtVS dari sisi spiritualitas, tapi bukan berarti jadi serius kok. Yang ada malah kita jadi lebih memahami bagaimana karakter-karakter di BtVS dan perubahan-perubahan mereka dari sisi sang pencipta dan para penulisnya. Menarik. Jadi sadar kalau punning banter-nya Buffy berkaitan erat dengan rasa percaya diri Buffy atas kekuatannya.
#Dibaca selama perjalanan kereta api Cirebon-Gambir.
Beberapa tahun lalu, aku menemukan DVD BtVS Season 1-7 di ITC Kuningan, dan sempat terkena demam seri ini dengan menonton stripping semua episodenya, dan menonton ulang berkali-kali. Aku juga sempat tergila-gila pada Spike, padahal dulu waktu serial ini diputar di RCTI sukanya sama Angel. Mungkin karena dulu belum sempat melihat transformasi karakter Spike dari pure evil menjadi lebih manusiawi.
Buku ini membahas BtVS dari sisi spiritualitas, tapi bukan berarti jadi serius kok. Yang ada malah kita jadi lebih memahami bagaimana karakter-karakter di BtVS dan perubahan-perubahan mereka dari sisi sang pencipta dan para penulisnya. Menarik. Jadi sadar kalau punning banter-nya Buffy berkaitan erat dengan rasa percaya diri Buffy atas kekuatannya.
#Dibaca selama perjalanan kereta api Cirebon-Gambir.
July 15, 2014
What's really sad is the reason this doesn't get five stars is because she made one INFINTESSIMAL misquote, and it stuck in my brain so much that I can't give her five stars. I am a sad, sad human being.
This is a truly, truly great book for the BTVS lovers. Even the not-as-obssessed-as-we type. If you have even a passing knowledge of the show, this is a really great book to read. It brings back the nostalgia for the show, plus throws in a whole lot of "deeper meaning". I just the quotes because honestly, I didn't really get the book to find a deeper meaning. I enjoyed it, nonetheless.
Really good read. And the Eliza interview? Kind of awwwwwesome. Her love for Joss definitely foreshadows her wanting him for Dollhouse. And this was when she was on Tru Calling.
This is a truly, truly great book for the BTVS lovers. Even the not-as-obssessed-as-we type. If you have even a passing knowledge of the show, this is a really great book to read. It brings back the nostalgia for the show, plus throws in a whole lot of "deeper meaning". I just the quotes because honestly, I didn't really get the book to find a deeper meaning. I enjoyed it, nonetheless.
Really good read. And the Eliza interview? Kind of awwwwwesome. Her love for Joss definitely foreshadows her wanting him for Dollhouse. And this was when she was on Tru Calling.
June 13, 2010
This is a surprisingly fun and insightful look at the spiritual themes of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and what can be learned from them. It's a fast read, but there's a lot of good material here.
The book draws exmaples primarily from Buddhism and Christianity, but reflects the show's own lack of affiliation with a particular path. Still, what I considered to be the most pertinent passage draws a Jewish example: "Like the biblical heroine Esther, Buffy is a young woman who feels the burden of preserving her people. And just as God is never mentioned in the book of Esther, God is merely implicit in the Buffyverse, present every time the characters put their lives on the line to save others."
The book draws exmaples primarily from Buddhism and Christianity, but reflects the show's own lack of affiliation with a particular path. Still, what I considered to be the most pertinent passage draws a Jewish example: "Like the biblical heroine Esther, Buffy is a young woman who feels the burden of preserving her people. And just as God is never mentioned in the book of Esther, God is merely implicit in the Buffyverse, present every time the characters put their lives on the line to save others."
October 13, 2016
Enjoyable read discussing the philosophy and spirituality of the TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". This book yet again reminded me of just how much I loved the show, with its light approach to dark subject matters, rich character development, and refreshing plot twists on familiar story lines.
It could go further into depth on any given topic (death, friendship, accountability, eg), but there are plenty of sources for that. This primarily synthesizes the biggest issues raised over the course of the show's 7 season run, while giving context for any and every episode or character reference.
Recommended to all Buffy fans, but especially to those of them who look for answers to deeper spiritual longings.
It could go further into depth on any given topic (death, friendship, accountability, eg), but there are plenty of sources for that. This primarily synthesizes the biggest issues raised over the course of the show's 7 season run, while giving context for any and every episode or character reference.
Recommended to all Buffy fans, but especially to those of them who look for answers to deeper spiritual longings.
May 18, 2009
If you are a die-hard Buffy/Angel fan, then this will be a fun piece of fluff for you. This book takes you through all seven seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer -- plus some of the spin-off, Angel -- picking out spiritual (and possibly religious) life lessons to be taken away from the show. There is absolutely nothing new or revolutionary discovered within its pages; if you've paid even the slightest bit of attention during the series, you've already made these connections. Still, it was a fun, quick read, and at the very least reminded me of some wonderful scenes and episodes!
August 11, 2007
Okay, let's get this over with. No, I am not a cultie of BTVS. I just happened to catch the reruns with my friends when I was in college, in between dinner and going out, every day, for a year or two. We're seriously not cultie types, no trekkie hand signals or whatever. But wow, for a young woman, there can be no better role model than Buffy. And this book lays it all out for ya.
October 6, 2011
Over all I liked this book, it was fun and some of the ideas were interesting albeit a bit of a philosophical stretch. This book played out during the Buffy phenom. showing she had quite a bit of Pop culture impact; bottom line, I think a lot of girls and women enjoying seeing a strong beautiful woman portrayed, who could, ahem, "kick butt".
August 20, 2012
surprisingly wonderful and informative! love it for the blend of buffyverse with religious studies... but not always in ways you would assume! was surprised at the spin the author took on btvs. bought it for the catchy title and thoroughly loved it- this book definitely left a lasting impression on me.
June 27, 2007
Do you realize they teach college courses on Buffy these days? Fantastic. This book takes an in depthe look at the symbolism and themes of religion in the television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". See, it was a smart show. ;p
April 17, 2008
This is quite possibily my favorite text on "Buffy." It explores the spiritual context of "Buffy," while referencing different religious ideas, namely Christianity and Buddhism. Their are many great quotes incorporated. It taps into the true power and inspiration of BTVS.
August 4, 2011
This is one that is probably for fans only. It was a lovely trip down memory lane, and I loved the way Riess was able to pull out all the spiritual elements of Buffy and put it into such a concise and easy to read format.
October 24, 2011
What did I learn from the Buffyverse? Redemption is about saving the world, mentors are important but you must think for yourself, a spiritual journey is better with friends. This book was awesome. :)
June 23, 2008
An amusing, quick read.
July 11, 2008
Ethics are everywhere.
July 23, 2008
Riess is the ultimate Buffy expert. If you are interested in Buffy or how televisions shows and movies use religious symbolism, this is a great book to read. It's a quick read too.
February 8, 2009
After reading this book it makes more sense to me why I love Buffy so much and watch it all the time. I watch the show when I am feeling down and the spirtual messages in Buffy helps me out.
March 3, 2010
An entertaining books containing considerable depth on how a meaningful life may be lived in service of others.
May 25, 2010
I like that the book doesn't simply focus on judeo christian religions and beliefs.
July 17, 2010
Just couldn't get into this book. This book didn't have a point. Just rehashing of the episodes intermingled with pseudo-intellectual analysis. Buffy isn't deep. It's entertainment.
September 26, 2011
Heeheeheehee!!
Want to read
August 21, 2012would you believe I actually bought thisw book?
I liked the series so I bought it on a fluck.
I liked the series so I bought it on a fluck.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews