{"product_id":"american-men","title":"American Men","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"In \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e, Jordan Ritter Conn delivers a clear-eyed examination of masculinity amid our current moral and political crisis with careful reporting and exacting prose. I hope this book is held up as a critical example of what it means to be an American Man for many years to come--the stories of these four men, and Conn himself, will stay with me for the rest of my days.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eBecca Andrews, author of No Choice: The Destruction of Roe v. Wade and the Fight to Preserve a Fundamental American Right\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003ci\u003e\"American Men\u003c\/i\u003e reminds us that narrative is capable of true risk, the kind of book that takes being alive as an argument for something other than punishing the self or the other. Jordan Ritter Conn asks what happens after you tell the truth, recognize all of the work left undone, and refuse to sell an easy answer.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eJoseph Earl Thomas, author of Sink and God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"This book is an astounding achievement. \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e, unflinching and here right on time, demands conversation.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eEliana Ramage, author of To the Moon and Back\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A captivating account of masculinity with personal revelations that will resonate universally.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Reminiscent of Lisa Taddeo's \n\u003ci\u003eThree Women\u003c\/i\u003e, Jordan Ritter Conn spins the lives of four men into an extraordinary piece of narrative journalism. Humorous and heartbreaking, these incredibly personal accounts make \n\u003ci\u003e American Men\u003c\/i\u003e a necessary addition to the national conversation surrounding masculinity. Whether I found myself cheering for these men or frustrated by their choices (or both), I could not put the book down.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAaron John Curtis, 2019 non-fiction Kirkus Prize judge, 2022 non-fiction National Book Award judge, and bestselling author of Old School Indian\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Unflinching in its honesty, \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e refuses to oversimplify masculinity in America. Jordan Ritter Conn renders thoughtful, intimate portraits of his subjects -- men navigating violence, trauma, sexuality, and belonging, charting paths through the contemporary social landscape. Through these men's stories, this book reveals how gender expectations can create both suffering and meaning across lines of race, class, and sexuality. This book is a rigorous, empathetic, urgent examination of who American men are and who they might become.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eSonora Jha, author of Intemperance, The Laughter, and How to Raise a Feminist Son\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Empathetic and quietly profound.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Conn's glimpse into the fragility of modern masculinity feels important.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eLibrary Journal (starred review)\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"A deeply immersive, intimate look into the lives of four men from vastly different backgrounds and experiences. Beautifully woven together, their stories reveal the current, confused state of American masculinity.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eWright Thompson, New York Times bestselling author of The Barn\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Jordan Ritter Conn's \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e is a masterclass in empathetic storytelling. With profound sensitivity and unwavering curiosity, he brings us into the lives of men grappling with the silent pressures of masculinity. This is journalism that listens deeply and writes with a rare generosity of spirit.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eGilbert King, Pulitzer prize-winning author of Devil in the Grove\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Wise, insightful, and harrowing, \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e will leave readers both shattered and inspired--and grateful for Jordan Ritter Conn's humanity. This book dares to suggest that even as his subjects struggle--and sometimes fail--there is also occasion for hope. At turns heart wrenching and uplifting, \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e showcases Conn's remarkable gifts as a storyteller, and as a man.\"-- \n\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eJennifer Finney Boylan, author of Cleavage: Men, Women, and the Space Between Us, and (with Jodi Picoult) Mad Honey\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eJordan Ritter Conn\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of \n\u003ci\u003eThe Road From Raqqa: A Story of Brotherhood, Borders, and Belonging\u003c\/i\u003e, runner-up for the 2021 Dayton Literary Peace Prize. He is a Senior Staff Writer for \n\u003ci\u003eThe Ringer\u003c\/i\u003e and the host of the narrative podcasts \n\u003ci\u003eWhat If: The Len Bias Story \u003c\/i\u003eand \n\u003ci\u003eSonic Boom\u003c\/i\u003e, named by \n\u003ci\u003eThe Atlantic\u003c\/i\u003e as one of the best podcasts of 2019 \n\u003ci\u003e. \u003c\/i\u003eHe lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with his family.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA deeply intimate portrait of the lives of four men that examines--in profound and comprehensive ways--what it means to be a man in America.\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e Men wield outsized power across all major institutions. But they are falling behind across all measures of well-being and success. They include loving husbands and absent fathers, corporate strivers and displaced workers, the objects and instruments of incredible violence. They are half the population. And yet when mentioned as a bloc, it's often to ask the question: What's \u003ci\u003ewrong \u003c\/i\u003ewith them? \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e is a book that burrows deep into the lives of four men, exploring how each of them construct their relationship to masculinity, and how they navigate that relationship over time. They include Ryan, an amateur MMA fighter from the Akwesasne Mohawk territory, struggling to come to terms with both his sexuality as a closeted gay man and his draw toward bar room violence; Gideon, an itinerant, tall and handsome West Point graduate and former baseball star who unravels when he encounters challenges to his status as the white masculine ideal; Joseph, a Seattle law student whose marriage teeters on the brink of turmoil as he tries on his own to contend with the effects of childhood sexual trauma; and Nate, a young Ohio man still living at home and trying to establish security for himself in a rural pocket of a red state, where he's under threat as someone who is Black, trans, and poor. Written with searing intimacy after five years of reporting, \n\u003ci\u003eAmerican Men\u003c\/i\u003e interweaves their stories into a mosaic that explores identity, heritage, and the pressures and performance of modern American masculinity. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 02\/01\/2026 pg. 71 (EAN 9781538709092, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 02\/02\/2026 (EAN 9781538709092, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 12\/15\/2025 (EAN 9781538709092, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Grand Central Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496057733398,"sku":"9781538709092","price":36.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781538709092.jpg?v=1783052105","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/american-men","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}