Two Syllable Men

by John A. McCaffrey

In the tradition of Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club and Ernest Hemingway’s Men Without Women, Two Syllable Men presents the male psyche in all its fragmented glory. From William, who finds his immigrant girlfriend’s English language translation notebook, and in it the words that define their growing relationship, to Steven, who is comforted whenever he spies trees or shrubs peeking out from the roofs of urban buildings, and who can’t walk through the bus station without physically running into people, and Harold, who will only eat an even-number of food items at any meal, and numbs his heartache by buying in bulk at Sam’s Club. These men, and nine more, still have fight left in them. They do not want to be alone, but learn that often the best way to find love and lasting happiness is to look inward, not outward.

112 pages, Paperback

Published April 26, 2016

About the author

John McCaffrey is the author of The Book of Ash, Two Syllable Men, What's Wrong With This Picture?, and Automatically Hip. He is a writing professor and a columnist for The Good Men Project.

Reviews

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The characters in McCaffrey's Two Syllable Men flawed and fallible and brilliant. They're people we know, and they've wedged themselves into situations that are both humorous and searingly embarrassing—situations that we as human have all experienced. In many of the stories, lonely and a need to be loved, or at least acknowledged, fuels the character's actions. A highly recommended read.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I initially thought this would be a great book for my husband (and it was!) but I also enjoyed it tremendously - real characters that are relatable...an all-round pleasant and enjoyable read!

[Micah Ling · Rating 5 out of 5]

It makes sense that this book opens with a quote from Pablo Neruda: master of writing odes to simple things that end up encompassing all of life. McCaffrey does that too. His stories are filled with the sensory: beige heels, bacon fat and peanut butter sandwiches, ATM receipts, kickboxing, sex on boats, yoga, the office. You feel bad for these characters, but you also relate to them. The men in these stories represent aging and growth, and sometimes the refusal to do either. McCaffrey's stories are easy to read, but they give you things to think about for a long time. He makes embarrassment and loneliness so real that it's almost uncomfortable. He proves that people--all people--have layers of complexity. And really, at the end of the day, all we need is someone to eat a meal with.

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is rare for a short story collection from a single writer be so stellar. John McCaffrey is a talented writer. Revolving his stories around challenges men face when it comes to women, McCaffrey details the lives of his characters with fresh zeal. Whether a two-pager or a page count of fifteen, this collection tells stories that all young men should read and all older men will connect to. With each story being solid and some being great, Two Syllable Men is a collection everyone should read.

[John McCaffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

"With the rhythmic precision of a prose poem, Two Syllable Men charts the interiors of 12 remote men in or around love. John McCaffrey writes with a musicality that's rare in literature today." - Iris Smyles, Iris Has Free Time

"Down, but not out, the men of Two Syllable Men are as complicated as they are conflicted: not to be reduced to the sum of their two syllables. Wounded by loss and longing for love, they may feel compelled to lie, cheat, steal--or simply charm--to conceal their vulnerability, yet aspire to so much more. McCaffrey's twelve stories here are astute case studies of the human male, finely nuanced with pathos while undeniably hilarious."
- Tim Bridwell, Sophronia L.

"Mirroring the great short stories by Raymond Carver, Two Syllable Men will appeal to both men and women. McCaffrey's use of dialogue to plum the rich internal worlds of his characters is uncanny, and his modern take on the age-old battle of the sexes reveals a soulful poignancy." - Jill Dearman, The Great Bravura

"John McCaffrey is a writer who thinks carefully about what he has to say, then chooses his words deliberately and wonderfully well. He's insightful, literate, funny and wise. Read these stories! They're finely-crafted gems!" - Burt Weissbourd, The Corey Logan Series

[Christoph Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Two Syllable Men" was too good a title to resist, though and I found the book to be a highly fascinating selection. I won't go into a lengthy description of the stories but refer you to the blurb.
What I will say it that the men and situations in the book are all great characters, their thoughts and feelings (about life and women mainly) are being shared honestly and uncensored. The brevity and poignancy of the stories worked well and often left me pondering and thinking. The male psyche gets put in the spotlight in a very unpretentious and enjoyable way. This is something I would recommend to anyone. There are hints of a male "Sex and the City" which was a great series about relationships and humans, although often not giving men as much time as this book does.

[Rob Schaab · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book of short stories! I had previously read McCaffrey’s Dystopian classic The Book of Ash (which I also highly recommend) and didn’t know what to expect from him in a completely different genre. The great imagination we saw in The Book of Ash (The Day of No Consequence concept, rustballs, impure, etc.) remains….a man who can’t stop hurting himself by throwing himself into people, a character who sneaks onto boats at a marina to hook up with his ex-wife, etc. These characters are in pain but there is still hope... It’s a very funny book. Looking forward to the next output from just one of many fine authors from that famous Nova class of 1987

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating selection of short stories. The men and situations portrayed in them are all great characters, their thoughts and feelings (about life and women mainly) are being shared honestly and uncensored. I'm not a huge fan of short stories but these worked well with their brevity and poignancy. The male psyche in the spotlight. Unpretentious, enjoyable and well put together these stories are highly recommended.

[Tom Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful stories from totally a man's perspective. These stories were written with wit and contained a quirkiness that at times came from left field or even a right field perspective. Highly literate and there was a "Sun Also Rises" thread through many of these short stories. Memorable and very entertaining.

[patricia sendelbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. I had to laugh at the end.

[Ana on the Shelves · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of those books that I had to push myself from it so I cando other things. I would have taken less time reading it if I didn't had things to do in bettwen.
Every story was pretty simple but at the same time gave just enough dettails so that the reader could picture the main character clearly in their head. All of them are a type of man, or close to a type of man, that we can picture, that maybe we know, that maybe it's close to us... and that's makes it quite interresting.
It was a book that made me feel many emotions and even laugh a bit. If a book can achieve that. Then it's a good book.
It's also pretty easy to read, small and the several talles make it even easier to just read a lot at once.
All in all, I cannot recomend this enough.
(English is not my native language so I am sorry for the mistakes this review might have.)

[Tim Bridwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Down, but not out, the men of John McCaffrey’s Two Syllable Men are as complicated as they are conflicted: not to be reduced to the sum of their two syllables. Wounded by loss and longing for love, they may feel compelled to lie, cheat, steal—or simply charm—to conceal their vulnerability, yet aspire to so much more. McCaffrey’s twelve stories here are astute case studies of the human male, finely nuanced with pathos while undeniably hilarious.

[Naomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

GOODREADS GIVEAWAY WIN.

Review to follow.x

[Ian Yarington · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book in the giveaways and I'm certainly glad I did. I was very impressed with the characters, some I identify with and some I didn't, but all very relatable anyway. I may be bias as a man but the themes were on par with the characters and the relatability. Often times the raw feelings of the characters being exposed had me thinking, "this is spot on" and even when it wasn't what I had experienced it was something that had me thinking and always feeling like it wasn't something out of the ordinary. I would highly recommend this book.

[Max Vertrauen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relationships are strange, wonderful and fragile. The book shows this well, but nothing more.

[Jill Dearman]

Two Syllable Men is full of nuance and humor. McCaffrey has a way of writing about the struggles in relationships, and in the search for them that really make you think. Male, female or nb it's easy to see yourself in these characters.

[Jennifer Lovell · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book. A lovely collection of stories from men in different situations with stories to tell. I feel like I understand the male mind a lot better now. Wonderfully written.