The Man's Book: The Essential Guide for the Modern Man

by Thomas Fink

Overview

Being modern and manly in today's world isn't always easy.

Do you know how to tie a bow-tie, mix a martini, or make a potato gun?

Do you know when to get married and how to break up, or the difference between a bock beer and a bitter?

Do you know which urinal to choose or how to start a fire with a Coke can?

The answers to every man's burning questions are within these pages, from the morning wet shave to the whiskey night-cap, from hunting deer with a .30-06 to wooing women like 007. At a time when the sexes are muddled and masculinity is marginalized, The Man's Book unabashedly celebrates maleness. Organized by subject in a man-logical way, it's the go-to guide for anyone with a Y chromosome.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316053044
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	05/06/2009
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Thomas Fink grew up in New York and Texas. He is a theoretical physicist and writer and lives in London. He designed The Man's Book himself. He is a man.

Editorial Reviews

From the author who gave us "85 Ways to Tie a Tie" comes this "essential guide for the modern man." And by modern, Fink apparently means precontemporary. His is a world where metrosexuals never existed and technology left no footprint beyond the sending of a text message. Odd for a writer who is also a physicist at the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences. Nor does he exhibit the slightest hint of cultural irony in this all-man almanac, and that, in turn, makes for a certain type of macho charm. Or maybe it's just the decidedly British tone of the work, which has been available in the U.K. since its 2006 first edition. Factoid lovers will find it hard not to enjoy the curious and random collection of lists, charts and instructions. Learn how to choose your best man or how to pick the best urinal in a public bathroom. View the Hamilton-Norwood scale of male pattern baldness, or a diagram showing "Eight Ways to Lace Your Shoes." Chivalry, guns and tree houses are all dwelled upon in-depth. Learn a bar trick, carve a turkey, start a campfire. While Fink uses his powers mostly for good, a section on "How to Start Smoking" is misguided at best, alarmingly advising readers, "There are a number of advantages associated with smoking which may for some offset the known disadvantages." (May)

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Publishers Weekly

Theoretical physicist Fink wrote this exhaustive compendium of men's customs, habits, and activities to celebrate being male "unabashedly." Organizing the book by topic, he presents diagrams of various styles of facial hair, instructions for building a tree house, and a detailed description of wine and spirits. Similar to Michael Powell's The Guide for Guys, this might be enjoyed by the target audience if you can get it in their hands. [For more man-friendly titles, see Douglas Lord's online LJ column, "Books for Dudes."-Ed.]

—Deborah Bigelow

Library Journal