David Szalay

What exactly is a man? The author seeks the answer to this question in a mosaic of stories about nine men of different ages, nationalities, and diverse life experiences, opinions, and fates. These disparate characters and the situations they face are not linked by a unifying plot line, but the book is held firmly together by a common, almost fundamental theme – the author’s effort to capture the various aspects of the contemporary concept of “masculinity.” The author’s view of men today is by no means flattering. He does not idealize the characters, their actions, or their motivations, yet this is not a blanket condemnation either. At a time when the phrase “crisis of masculinity” is bandied about in academic treatises, social magazines, and self-help guides, these stories offer a perceptive, imaginative, entertaining, and non-formulaic catalog of possible answers to the questions of who European men are, what they are, what they strive for, and how (and also why) they so often fail in their efforts to fulfill their life’s dreams.

Published by Akropolis, 2021