A Better Man

A poignant look at boyhood, in the form of a heartfelt letter from comedian Michael Ian Black to his teenage son before he leaves for college, and a radical plea for rethinking masculinity and teaching young men to give and receive love.

“As a parent of both boys and girls, I find myself rebuffing the gender-based cultural assumptions that are foisted on them more frequently than I could have ever imagined. Thank you, Michael Ian Black, for challenging society’s antiquated approach to raising boys and deepening the conversation about what we actually want for our kids. Sir, you are a good egg.” —Samatha Bee, host of Full Frontal with Samantha Bee

In this thoughtful, inspiring, and deeply personal book, comedian, actor, and father Michael Ian Black gets (mostly) serious about the trouble with masculinity. In the form of a heartfelt letter to his college-bound son—but with ideas sure to resonate for many parents—he reveals his own complicated relationship with his father, explores the damage caused by the expectations placed on boys to “man up,” and searches for the best way to help his son be part of the solution, not the problem, in a world in which the word “masculinity” now goes hand in hand with “toxic.”

Part memoir, part advice book, Black delivers a poignant answer to an urgent question: How can we be, and raise, better men? A Better Man is for parents, yes, but it is also for anyone looking for a path forward as we navigate the complex gender issues of our time.