Manslations: Decoding the Secret Language of Men

I deliberately avoid dating self help books but this book floored me. First of all after just a 5 second flick through I couldn't put it down. I found myself sitting on the floor in the book store aisle laughing my head off & nodding in agreement ( ok so maybe I had a few "YES!!!" moments too). To say this book is insightful is an understatement. Even if you have nailed the man thing believe me you still have something you can learn from this author. And did I mention its intelligent w/out being condescending. The voice( yes, it spoke to me) is that of your best male friend telling you to take a seat because he is gonna tell it like it is.

I've read my fair share of dating books, and frankly, so many of them lack substance. Jeff Mac's Manslations is both funny and informative, giving a guy's perspective without the harsh snark of He's Just Not That Into You. Some of his examples may not be exactly a barrel of laughs for us ladies (such as that, well, men will sleep with you even if they don't like you, just because they can), but ultimately he has a positive message: that guys are easy to read if you don't try to read too much into them. I'm as guilty of this as anyone, trying to read between the lines of emails and overanalyzing conversations well beyond the point that I'm making any sense. Mac's basic message to women is to speak up. Playing hard to get won't get you anywhere, and hinting that you want a certain gift won't do the trick. The chapters on the first date and post-date debriefing do an excellent job of breaking down what guys say and what they mean. What I really liked about Manslations is that Mac owns up to men sometimes acting in ways that seem a bit irrational (sorry guys), but he doesn't try to excuse men acting stupidly, but rather says that jerky guys are just jerky guys, and that the average guy isn't a jerk, but won't always act the way a woman would. I'm not saying that it's then been a snap for me to decipher male behavior when it comes to dating simply by reading this, but I feel like I have a better handle on things that have confused me in the past. Personally, I don't really get the whole sleeping with people you don't even like thing, so I chalk that one up to a guy thing I will never fully understand. Though it's often tempting to want to argue back to Mac (but WHY do men think/act like that?) or point out the ridiculousness of it, it's to his credit that he counteracts many of the arguments I would have made. At the end of the day, Mac is both defending his gender (in its more honorable incarnations, mostly) and giving women unique insights that'll serve well in all sorts of dating scenarios, from flirtation to (way) beyond.

Manslations: Decoding the Secret Language of Men This book is a wonderful combination of humor and solid (if offbeat) insights into the minds' of men as women attempt to negotiate the minefields of their amorous relationships. I found myself laughing out loud at how Jeff Mac nails the craziness of today's world.

I bought this book as a present to myself. Finally there is a book that is straight foward about why guys act the way that they do. If nothing else its a great laugh too.

This book is really good, useful and fun to read. I've been going through life trying to make sense out of what magazines/books/my mom/my girlfriends were telling me about men and dating but that was so complicated I was just about to give up altogether. That's when I found Jeff's words and they made my life a lot easier and happier. I just stopped freaking and started having fun.