Join us for an evening with Michael Ian Black in conversation with Merill Markoeabout his new book, A Better Man: A (Mostly Serious) Letter to My Son.
The book is a poignant look at boyhood, in the form of a heartfelt letter from Black to his teenage son before he leaves for college. It’s also a radical plea for rethinking masculinity and teaching young men to give and receive love.
In a world in which the word “masculinity” now often goes hand in hand with “toxic,” Black offers a way forward for boys, men and anyone who loves them. Part memoir, part advice book, and written as a heartfelt letter to his college-bound son, A Better Man reveals the comedian and actor’s own complicated relationship with his father, explores the damage and rising violence caused by the expectations placed on boys to “man up” and searches for the best way to help young men be part of the solution, not the problem. “If we cannot allow ourselves vulnerability,” he writes, “how are we supposed to experience wonder, fear, tenderness?”
Honest, funny and hopeful, Black skillfully navigates the complex gender issues of our time and answers an urgent question: How can we be, and raise, better men?
