Mate

A mixed bag.

Lots of legitimately insightful points, particularly regarding how women approach dating and sex differently than men and the evolutionary reasons why. The authors provide actionable advice for how to develop attractiveness, with self-improvement at the core.

Things like the nutritional claims make me doubt the veracity of other claims in the book. Max and Miller say that you should stop eating grains, period. Sorry, but I'm not convinced that if I eat a diet of vegetables, fruits, lean meats, nuts, legumes, etc., that putting my veggie burger on a whole-grain bun is going to harm me in any way. They also advocate for doing weightlifting exercises as fast as possible, which seems like the exact guide for what not to do—slower motions tear muscle fibers more efficiently and therefore contribute more to progressive overload.

(Edit: The more I think about the nutritional advice, the dumber it seems. For a book ostensibly about empowering men to form social bonds with women more effectively, the social function of food is completely overlooked. Good luck trying to date a Hispanic woman whose rice and beans you refuse to eat because Max and Miller told you that grains are a no-no.)

It's worth a read, but you have to assess for yourself what's valuable and what's not. If nothing else, you'll probably finish the book with more consideration of the different factors at play in human courtship. I can also say that I feel that my outcomes are more within my control than I did before—there are many ways for a man to be attractive, and the authors do a good job of demonstrating this point.

A couple of the jokes are home runs, but most are mildly grating. It would have been nice to read a text with similar ideas, but with either a more mature sense of humor or a commitment to a serious tone.

I will give the authors credit for the list of books on human sexuality, which looks quite promising.