Many of my male friends ask me for book recommendations. The most common request is: No girlie shit about feelings, love & babies, and no made-up stories—only real stuff, facts, and information. I of course roll my eyes at the idea that feelings, love, and babies are for girls. And at the same time, I think what my male friends are actually asking for, is a reading experience that describes the world in their terms. While two of the books on this list are fiction, their value is in the way they validate overarching themes of being a man in the contemporary world. They are “made-up stories” in the sense that they are fiction, but the topics they touch on are real in terms of their explorations of manhood.
This list has been put together with the professional working man in mind. The books that sit at a 250-page count are segmented in a way that allows for a reader to read a few pages, leave the book for a few days or even a few months, and come back to it without feeling disoriented. The other two books are truly short and are great for anyone who wants to get through a book, cover to cover within a long weekend.
Kendrick Lamar’s to Pimp a Butterfly
Summary: This book takes a deep dive into the sounds, images, and lyrics of To Pimp a Butterfly to suggest that Kendrick appeals to the psyche of a nation in crisis and embraces the development of a radical political conscience. Kendrick breathes fresh life into the Black musical protest tradition and cultivates a platform for loving resistance. Combining funk, jazz, and spoken word, To Pimp a Butterfly's expansive sonic and lyrical geography brings a high level of innovation to rap music
What I love: The recent Kendrick vs Drake feud got me interested in what scholars said about either of these artists. What excited me the most about this book is that finally, rap is being taken seriously by both scholars and the mainstream publishing industry. Additionally, I am looking forward to the way that this book might further refine my knowledge on the history of rap music and will polish my musical vocabulary.
Quote: “Kendrick Lamar offers listeners a personal narrative that examines what it means to stay healthy and whole in a system of racial capitalism that negates self-determination and cuts short promising lives. In the popular sphere, Kendrick’s music echoes bright against a redundant background of rap clichés by celebrating aliveness and liberating love”
Page Count: 152
Between Eternities
USA | SA (special order through your nearest Exclusive Books)
Summary: This new collection of essays--by turns literary, philosophical, and autobiographical--journeys from the crumbling canals of Venice to the wide horizons of the Wild West, and Marías captures each new vista with razor-sharp acuity and wit. He explores, with characteristic relish, subjects ranging from soccer to classic cinema, from comic books and toy soldiers to mortality and memory, from "The Most Conceited of Cities" to "Why Almost No One Can Be Trusted," making each brilliantly and inimitably his own.
What I love: In his essay, “Why Almost No One Can Be Trusted” Marias draws from the major news story of Lionel Messi leaving Barcelona to the political question of Catalonia trying to cede from Spain. I have known very few writers who can pull this off in two and a half pages.
Quote: “A four year old child blocking the aisle would definitely have strained my nerves. I am not sure I would have been able to refrain from giving him a good slap. No I would doubtless have contained my irritation because since I reached the age of shaving, I’ve always behaved myself onboard planes.”
Page Count: 256
No One Writes to the Colonel
Summary: Set in the decaying Colombian town of Macondo, the Colonel is scraping together the money for food and medicine. It is the Colonel's rooster that gives him hope for a better future as it has become a symbol of defiance in the face of despair.
Quote: “It was October. A difficult morning to get through, even fro a man like himself, who survived so many mornings like this one. For nearly sixty years—since the end of the last civil war—the colonel had done nothing else but wait. October was one of the few things which arrived.”
What I love: This is one of the shortest books you will ever find. This book serves as a wonderful introduction into one of the most lauded writers of the late 20th century and the biggest literary name to come out of Colombia. This novella will swiftly usher you into the realm of the “well read.”
Page Count: 80
This is How you Loose Her
Summary: This short story collection is of nine interlinked stories that follow Yunior, a macho yet melancholy Dominican-American man. These nine stories cover the topics of love, lust and infidelity.
What I love: The short story structure allows readers to come in and out of the book as they please, allowing two weeks or two months to pass by without the disorientation of re-entering a traditional novel after a break.
Quote: “ Your girl catches you cheating. (Well, actually she’s your fiancée, but hey, in a bit it so won’t matter.) She could have caught you with one sucia, she could have caught you with two, but as you’re a totally batshit cuero who didn’t ever empty his email trash can, she caught you with fifty! Sure, over a six-year period, but still. Fifty fucking girls? Goddamn.”
Page Count: 240
Note: The summaries were pulled from the back panel of each book..
I love the format of this article, with the different aspects for us to consider why you recommend the books, and thank you for sharing this literature – we may yet become more cultured!