JD Daniels

I had no idea what to expect from this slender collection, and now that I've read it all in two sittings, I am not sure what to make of it. The volume contains several "letters" (the subtitle refers to "essays") that explore various expressions of international tough-guy masculinity. For example, In the first piece, "Letter from Cambridge", a bookish man transforms himself into a fighter by studying Brazilian martial arts. In another, "Letter from Majorca", a man learns the ways of the sea by spending time aboard ship with Israeli sailors. I am not sure if the "I" in each of the stories was meant to be the same character or different characters (I tend to think the latter), or if the narratives are meant to reflect the author's actual experiences. Interesting, but not likely to be everyone's cup of tea.… (more)