Chicago - August 29, 2006

Getting Personal

“I Know You’re Out There,” by Michael Beaumier

Once upon a time, before Match.com, there were the personals — those anonymous shout-outs for love tucked away at the back of the paper.

And who better to chronicle these cris de coeur than Michael Beaumier, former head of the Chicago Reader’s personals department, in his beguiling debut, I Know You’re out There: Private Longings, Public Humiliations, and Other Tales from the Personals.

A sensitive smart ass and self-appointed impresario of love, Beaumier took his job really, really seriously. For seven years he helped lonely hearts condense their fondest dreams and darkest wishes into 25 words or less.

But Beaumier didn’t stop there. He made matches between advertisers, arranged rendezvous for recently released convicts, and even wrote a letter of recommendation for a particularly shy customer who needed extra help.

Then there was Beaumier’s own personal life — including a tricky, troublesome relationship.

More than a memoir, I Know You’re out There is a portrait of the American search for a soul mate: wry, sexy, clumsy, slightly creepy, and — against all odds — sort of adorable.

Kind of like your date last week.

Available online at amazon.com.