Becoming a Man

From award-winning, bestselling author Julia Baird, comes a collection of practical, funny, uplifting and inspiring letters for Australian young men - on how to become the kind of men they want to be.

When Julia Baird's son turned 16, and the internet was rumbling with talk of the manosphere, she decided to ask a handful of family and friends to write a letter to him about what it means to be a "good man". The response was overwhelming; her son Sam read them in a three hour burst.

Now. inspired by the sincere, open, funny and wise letters they wrote - Julia, together with Sam, has collected letters, thoughts and advice from over sixty men on what it means to be, or become a man. Knowing there are no easy solutions, or flawless role models, each of these men has written from the heart, hoping to spark conversation, or be given the advice they never were. From writers and thinkers to boxers and cricketers, from journalists to musicians to former politicians and prisoners, these men have a broad, idiosyncratic and diverse outlook - sometimes funny, sometimes very moving, sometimes practical, but always thought-provoking. They write about fathers and mentors, sex and love, friendships and families, their own fears, shortcomings and mistakes, and the passions and practices that have sustained them.

This book is the perfect gift for any young man - or man of any age - designed to be dipped in and out of, to spark conversations about the men who we most admire and inspire us, and why.

A proportion of the royalties will go towards the Reach Foundation www.reach.org.au

'Compelling ... Ultimately, Becoming a Man offers much to readers of all ages and genders, especially those who want to hear men speak openly about the experiences that have shaped them.' Books+Publishing

About the Author

Julia Baird is a Sydney-based author and journalist. She writes columns for the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the ABC. She is a former co-host of The Drum on ABC TV, senior editor of Newsweek in New York, Joan Shorenstein Fellow at the Kennedy School at Harvard University, and op-ed contributor for the New York Times and the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Her first book, Media Tarts, was based on her PhD in History about the portrayal of female politicians. Victoria, her biography of Queen Victoria, was published globally to critical acclaim and was one of the New York Times' top ten books of 2016. Phosphorescence was a multi-award-winning international bestseller. Bright Shining was shortlisted for the Australian Book Industry Award for Non-Fiction Book of the Year. Julia lives near the sea with her two children and an abnormally large dog.