Shopping Survival Guide for Men

How a Man Can Survive a Shopping Experience Without Having to Gnaw His Own Arm Off

Non-Fiction - Humor/Comedy
Kindle Edition
Reviewed on 05/13/2015
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Mike Powell for Readers' Favorite

Starting with a mythical, but very amusing 'history' of shopping, Dan Van Oss throws caution to the wind and risks the wrath of women worldwide as he presents his shopping survival guide: Shopping Survival Guide for Men - How a Man Can Survive a Shopping Experience Without Having to Gnaw His Own Arm Off. Written very much from an unreconstructed male point of view, I doubt whether even the most ardent feminist (female OR male) will seriously take offence at some of the age-old stereotypes that Dan presents. Painting men as helpless victims of the female desire to shop, Dan's book sets up various scenarios and allegedly gives men the tools to survive an experience that they would not really wish upon themselves.

Hopefully any female readers of the book - there are bound to be some who are curious about the title! - will end up laughing too; maybe a few will see a grain of truth in some of the scenes? Others may point out that male vices are just as intense, only different. While Dan talks about women looking through "her 14th sale rack," women will undoubtedly be able to come up with a dozen equally pointed counter-punches!

But for those men who really, REALLY can't stand the thought of a shopping trip with their loved one, there is all sorts of practical (devious?) advice. For example: "...always drop off your passengers at the entrance to the store. This will not only score you some most likely much-needed man points, but it also allows extra time for cranking that last part of 'Separate Ways' by Journey on the oldies station you can only listen to when no one else is in the car. Roam the lot looking for the best parking spot possible, as this will not only be your last manly act of the day, it will also provide you with more time to not be shopping."

Dan's survival guide is a humorous light read - a well-judged length too, ideal for a plane or train journey. Enjoyable, but, for many (hopefully) modern men, either slightly uncomfortable, or (probably more likely) a guilty pleasure!