Book Review: The Illustrated Art of Manliness by B. McKay et al.

The Illustrated Art of Manliness written by Brett McKay and The Art of Manliness with illustrations by Ted Slampyak

The Art of Manliness website and podcast has been offering advice, tips, and guidance to men on a wide variety of practical skills from chopping firewood to shining shoes to jump-starting a car to escaping zip-tie handcuffs and giving a manly handshake. Often on the website, these skills are taught through illustrated guides showing step-by-step instructions with easy-to-follow and classic-looking pictures. They've deliberately patterned them after drawings like those found in old Boys' Life magazines. This current book brings together dozens of these guides and adds some new ones to the mix.

The book is entertaining and informative, full of stuff I already knew and stuff I was dying to know (walking like a ninja is way cooler than walking like an Egyptian (sorry, Bangles)). It both reads quickly and is easy to jump in and out of--if you are like me, the kids are always interrupting reading time.

Highly recommended.

Sample illustration from the website (and also in the book):