LELAND'S JOURNAL

Gentleman Author

November/December 1997

Reading time min

Gentleman Author

Michael Crawford

It's a slim book (171 pages) with a big mission: teaching men "how to survive and thrive with style." The Gentleman's Guide to Life (Clarkson Potter/Publishers, 1997) gives tips on selecting a tie, buying art, losing love handles, bluffing your way through a wine list and endearing yourself to your girlfriend's parents. "The premise of the book is that there are a lot of men who are fairly clueless and want some answers," says author Steve Friedman, '77.

A former senior editor at GQ magazine, Friedman offers advice in four categories: fashion, fitness, romance and "living large," which he defines as "basic things guys need to know." For example: "If you break it off, she often gets to keep the engagement ring." And: "Do not ever call a bottle of wine 'promiscuous' or 'sluttish.' You will fool no one."

The tone, Friedman admits, "veers between how-to and sophomoric yucks." He says he wanted to poke fun at people who take this sort of subject too seriously: "Whether you have cuffs on your pants isn't going to be the difference between misery and ecstasy."

Friedman, 42, lives in New York, where he is working on a second book. He confesses that he's never been the sharpest dresser. "If any of my classmates read that I wrote a book on fashion, their reaction will either be hilarity or horror."

Trending Stories

  1. Palm Pilots

    The university

  2. 8 Tips for Forgiving Someone Who Hurt You

    Advice & Insights

  3. The Huberman Effect

    Health/Wellness

  4. Should We Abolish the Electoral College?

    Law/Public Policy/Politics

  5. How to Find Your People

    Advice & Insights

You May Also Like

© Stanford University. Stanford, California 94305.