Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self by Stephen Mansfield
Non-fiction. 304 Pages. 5 Stars
Synopsis:
Witty, compelling, and shrewd, Mansfield’s Book of Manly Men is about resurrecting your inborn,timeless, essential, masculine self.
The Western world is in a crisis of discarded honor, dubiousintegrity, and faux manliness. It is time to recover what we have lost.
Stephen Mansfield shows us the way. Working with timeless maximsand stirring examples of manhood from ages past, Mansfield issues atrumpet call of manliness fit for our times.
“My goal in this book is simple,” he says. “I want to identify what a genuine man does—the virtues, the habits, the disciplines, the duties, the actions of true manhood—and then call men to do it.”
My Review:
For those of you who need it, let me preface this review: I am NOT the intended audience for this book. I am a young adult female. However, I don’t believe this book should only be read by men. Quite the contrary, I think this is a book that everyone can get something out of. Yes, it is geared toward men. Yes, every man who actually wants to be a man needs to read this book. But I think the female population is also sorely in need of this message. We’re the ones who have damaged the true image of manhood. If more women held standards like these, encouraged the men in our society to be manly men, and were simply aware of the message in this book our society would be in a much better place as a whole.
Stephen Mansfield defines manhood by using four “manly maxims” or pillars on which he builds the idea of true manhood. He points out that, especially in our modern day American culture, manhood is something we don’t talk about, don’t act out, and don’t teach our young boys and men to enter into. Our culture lacks the celebration of maturing men. And, I believe, Mansfield quite eloquently points out why this lack is such an issue. He uses little known stories about iconic men from history to model actions, attitudes, and qualities of honorable men. The book is filled with challenging ideas, actionable steps, and practical advice. There are resources in the back of the book for further reading, viewing, etc. There are questions at the end of each chapter designed to create opportunities to act as well as think about the character traits. The book is also smattered with excellent poems and quotes that display true manly qualities.
This is more than just a book about boys becoming men. This is more than just a collection of historical antidotes. This book is a challenge, a call to arms. This book states truths and then dares the reader to live them out. The book is a set of blueprints for building character. The book is about being honorable, true, and noble. The character qualities can apply to more than just men. Women can find a challenge to nobility between these pages. It may manifest in different ways, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t called to hone our characters too. This book just focuses on men leading each other, and us women, in that lifelong fight. Furthermore, as a woman, I used this book to learn how better to relate to and understand the men in my life, what they need, what motivates them, and how to encourage this kind of atmosphere and attitude in men.
I want men in my life who stand up for what is right, men who tend their fields and fight for one another. I want the men in my life to have that inner sense of duty and who answer the higher calling that they’ve been given. If we want the boys to become men, then we need to foster these principles in their lives and challenge them to live up to these expectations. For the men in your life, this would be an excellent gift. For you women out there, I would certainly say you’ve missed something if you turned your nose up at this one. Excellently written, easy read full of challenging concepts.