Being the Strong Man A Woman Wants
Elliott Katz
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 Award Press
ISBN: 0973695102

Timeless wisdom on being a man.

Do any of these sound familiar?
 • No matter how hard you try to please her, she's not happy.
 • You work hard for your family, yet you feel unappreciated.
 • You're in a relationship, & feel you've lost control of your life.

How do you gain respect & enjoyment in your relationship? How can you become the hero to the woman in your life?

Being the Strong Man A Woman Wants explains why many of today's relationships aren't working & what the man can do to make things better. Drawing upon age-old principles that really do work, this book challenges popular ideas & explains why today's New Age guy is frustrated & bewildered.

Traditionally, men learned this wisdom from their fathers. Today, many men grow up without the benefit of a strong male role model. This story is about a journey of discovery a man called Michael takes with his grandfather, who shares time-proven wisdom that challenges many of the beliefs that have emerged over the past 30 years. Michael discovers how this wisdom can help him improve his relationship with his wife, &, dare I say it, help him grow as a person.

Being the Strong Man A Woman Wants is a short book, which I hope Elliott Katz gets on tape so men can listen as they commute, & it's a fast read, with lots to think about & chapter titles such as:
If you don't lead, I can't dance
Knowing what you want
It's not being controlling
Being worthy
Taking full responsibility
Being manly
Setting goals
Think before you act
Watch men who are strong, & many more.

So, what women want is a “strong” man, which doesn't mean they want a controlling tyrant, bully or boss... they want a man who is strong in knowing where he came from, who he is & where he's going. Trying to “please” his wife, trying to “keep the peace”, Michael has abdicated his responsibility in the decision making of his family, thinking it enough that he brings home the bacon, that he buys everything his children ask for. He also has become passive about working at his marriage, forgotten he has a backbone & that, as a father, he is a role model for his son & for the man his daughter is likely to choose to marry.

When Michael celebrates (without his wife & children present -- which tells you volumes about their marriage!) his grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary he asks his grandfather “How did you do it?”

Later, on a trek into the wilderness, one Michael's grandfather had often taken him on during his childhood, the two men walk & talk, with the younger one asking questions about married life & parenting, & the Elder, with the help of a notebook of wise sayings he's kept, offers some answers, all of which make a person think.

It's no secret that men, since the beginning of recorded time, even since the stories in the Bible, have been wondering what women want in a man. In this slim book, Elliott Katz offers the musings of wise men down the ages (with a Notes section of who they were) who have written on this subject. Michael & his grandfather update the sayings into modern life, & look at the ideas behind the words ‘strong, husband, leadership, responsibility’.

Simply told & oft-repeated the lessons are blended into the story of that walk within a glorious landscape. You hear Michael's whining helplessness about being unappreciated begin to change into hopeful intention, as he perceives he's not alone, that his grandfather had much the same problems early in his marriage, & that there's something tangible he can do about his current misery.

& for us women, give your man a copy, after you've read it so you'll know what he's about, & boy! Will you be surprised... & glad!

Could have done with an editor's ministrations, however, a good manual on how to reclaim your sense of worth & respect, & how to live like a man, & not a “hen-pecked hubby” -- remember why there's a pecking order!

Being the Strong Man A Woman Wants: Timeless wisdom on being a man has won the USA Book News Best Books Award for books on men.

More from Elliott Katz: The Complete Guide to Walking in Canada, The Great Toronto Bicycling Guide & more.
(11/20/05)

Rebecca