cover image Breaking the Male Code: Unlocking the Power of Friendship

Breaking the Male Code: Unlocking the Power of Friendship

Robert Garfield. Gotham, $26.95 (288p) ISBN 978-1-592-40904-4

What it means to be a man has changed in recent decades, and according to psychotherapist Garfield, men need new ways to relate to each other and the world at large in order to survive and thrive in it. In this rewarding self-help book, Garfield guides men through the whys and practical hows of developing fulfilling male friendships. According to him, platonic friendships can offer the keys to emotional balance and intelligence that past versions of the “guy code” of behavior have neglected. Garfield shares lessons he’s developed through his time leading “friendship labs,” a “guy-safe” term for group therapy, where he focuses on helping men develop friendships that are free from the societal and gendered traps he calls “dementors,” such as brutal machismo and homophobia. Friendship is both tool and reward for Garfield, who focuses in later chapters on developing friendships that sustain every sphere of a man’s life—the office, his family, his marriage, and more. It’s hard to imagine a guy’s guy picking this book up, but if he were assigned to read it, he’d be surprised—it contains an empathetic, approachable, skills-driven guide to an invaluable reward. [em]Agent: Joelle Delbourgo, Joelle Delbourgo Associates. (May) [/em]