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Dad Reads: Book Recommendations for the Modern Man for Fathers Day

Updated: Jul 7, 2023


Father's Day is just around the corner, and what better way to show the special men in our lives how much we appreciate them than with a good book? Whether it's for your dad, husband, brother, or friend, a thoughtfully chosen book can make for a meaningful and lasting gift. However, with so many books out there, it can be overwhelming to decide which one to get. That's where I come in. As an avid reader and book enthusiast, I've put together a list of books that are sure to appeal to the modern man in your life. From gripping thrillers to heartwarming memoirs, these books will make for a great addition to any bookshelf and are guaranteed to be enjoyed by men of all ages and interests.


Title: The Escape Artist


Author: Jonathon Freedland

Genre: Thriller, Mystery Suspense

Publisher: John Murray

Date Published: 2022


About Book: In April 1944 nineteen-year-old Rudolf Vrba and fellow inmate Fred Wetzler became two of the very first Jews ever known to break out of Auschwitz. Under electrified fences and past armed watchtowers, evading thousands of SS men and slavering dogs, they trekked across marshlands, mountains and rivers to freedom. Vrba's mission: to reveal to the world the truth of the Holocaust. In the death factory of Auschwitz, Vrba had become an eyewitness to almost every chilling stage of the Nazis' process of industrialised murder. The more he saw, the more determined he became to warn the Jews of Europe what fate awaited them. A brilliant student of science and mathematics, he committed each detail to memory, risking everything to collect the first data of the Final Solution. After his escape, that information would form a priceless thirty-two-page report that would reach Roosevelt, Churchill and the pope and eventually save over 200,000 lives. But the escape from Auschwitz was not his last. After the war, he kept running - from his past, from his home country, from his adopted country, even from his own name. Few knew of the truly extraordinary deed he had done. Now, at last, Rudolf Vrba's heroism can be known - and he can take his place alongside those whose stories define history's darkest chapter.



Title: Two Nights in Lisbon

Author: Chris Pavone

Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Suspense

Publisher: Head of Zeus – An Aries Book

Date Published: 2022


About Book: A woman wakes up to discover her new husband is missing and sets out on a wild race of power, politics, and revenge in this international thriller from New York Times bestselling author Chris Pavone. You think you know a person... Ariel Pryce wakes up in Lisbon, alone. Her husband is gone – no warning, no note, not answering his phone. Something is wrong. She starts with hotel security, then the police, then the US embassy, at each confronting questions she can't fully answer: What exactly is John doing in Lisbon? Why would he drag her along on his business trip? Who would want to harm him? And why does Ariel know so little about her new husband? The clock is ticking. Ariel is running out of time. But the one person in the world who can help her is the one person she doesn't want to ask... An intelligent, multi-layered thriller, Two Nights in Lisbon is filled with twists, turns, husbands, wives, secrets and lies – and it will linger long after you turn the surprising final page.



Title: The Dark Remains


Author: Ian Rankin, William McIlvanney

Genre: Mystery Crime

Publisher: Canongate Books

Date Published: 2021


About Book: If the truth's in the shadows, get out of the light . . . Lawyer Bobby Carter did a lot of work for the wrong type of people. Now he’s dead and it was no accident. He’s left behind his share of enemies, but who dealt the fatal blow? DC Jack Laidlaw’s reputation precedes him. He’s not a team player, but he’s got a sixth sense for what’s happening on the streets. As two Glasgow gangs go to war, Laidlaw needs to find out who got Carter before the whole city explodes.



Title: Taste


Author: Stanley Tucci

Genre: Memoir

Publisher: Fig Tree

Date Published: 2021


About Book: From award-winning actor and food obsessive Stanley Tucci comes an intimate and charming memoir of life in and out of the kitchen - the perfect accompaniment to your summer Before Stanley Tucci became a household name with The Devil Wears Prada, The Hunger Games, and his legendary Negronis, he grew up in an Italian American family that spent every night around he table. In Searching For Italy, he revealed his passion for the secrets and delights of the country's many cuisines. Now, he shares the magic of a lifetime of meals, and the stories behind them. Filled with anecdotes about growing up, shooting foodie films like Julie & Julia, falling in love across the table, and making dinner for his family, Taste is a reflection on the joys of food and life itself. Through five-star meals and burnt dishes, and from the good times to the bad, each morsel of this gastronomic journey is as heartfelt and delicious as the last.



Title: Pele: The Autobiography


Author: Pele

Genre: Biography

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK

Date Published: 2008


About Book: Even people who don't know football know Pelé. The best of a generation of Brazilian players universally acknowledged as the most accomplished and attractive group of footballers ever to play the game, he won the World Cup three times and is Brazil's all-time record goalscorer. But how did this man -- a sportsman, a mere footballer, like many others -- become a global icon? Was it just by being the best at what he did, or do people respond to some other quality? The world's greatest footballer now gives us the full story of his incredible life and career. Told with his characteristic grace and modesty, but covering all aspects of his playing days and his subsequent careers as politician, international sporting ambassador and cultural icon, PELE: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY is an essential volume for all sports fans, and anyone who admires true rarity of spirit.


Title: Small Worlds


Author: Caleb Azumah Nelson

Genre: Coming of Age, Family

Publisher: Viking

Date Published: 2023


About Book: Dancing is the one thing that can solve Stephen's problems. At Church with his family, the shimmer of Black hands raised in praise. With his band, making music speaking not just to their hardships, but their joys. Grooving with his best friend, so close their heads might touch. Dancing alone to his father's records, uncovering parts of a man he has never truly known. His youth, shame and sacrifice. Stephen has only ever known himself in song. But what becomes of him when the music fades?


Title: Unbreakable

Author: Ronnie O’Sullivan

Genre: Memoir

Publisher: Seven Dials

Date Published: 2023


About Book: A teenage snooker prodigy, Ronnie turned professional with the highest of expectations. This pressure, together with a challenging personal life, catapulted Ronnie into a life of excess and addiction. He was winning titles - his first within a year of turning professional - but losing himself and his game as he tried to block out the mental pain and misery. Whilst Ronnie appeared at the height of the game to spectators, these were the moments when he felt at his lowest. In the year 2000 Ronnie started rehab and began the journey to get his life back, addressing his demons and working on developing a stronger and more resilient mindset. More than twenty years on, Ronnie is still obsessed with delivering his peak performance and never happier than when in a snooker hall, but success has now taken on a new meaning for the record-equalling world champion. Framed around the many lessons Ronnie has learned from his extraordinary career, Unbreakable takes us beyond the success and record-breaking achievements to share the reality - and brutality - of making it to the very top, whatever your field. Ronnie is the first to say he doesn't have all the answers, but in sharing the experiences that have shaped him and mistakes that have made him, he hopes to help readers navigate their own personal challenges and obstacles, and in turn reach their maximum potential. This is Ronnie O'Sullivan as you've never seen him before, the definitive and unflinching story of a true British icon and a fascinating insight into the mindset of the world's greatest snooker player.


Title: SAS


Author: Joshua Levine

Genre: History

Publisher: William Collins

Date Published: 2023


About Book: The SAS began as a lie, a story of a British parachute unit in the North African desert, to convince the Axis they were under imminent threat. The lie was so effective that soon a small band of men were brought together to make it real. These recruits were the toughest and brightest of their cohort, the most resilient, most dynamic and most self-sufficient. Their first commanders, David Stirling and Paddy Mayne, would go down in history as unorthodox visionaries. Yet this book tells much more than the usual origin story of the unit and seeks out less well-known leaders like Bill Fraser, who was essential in helping the SAS achieve fame for their devastating raids. By looking beyond the myth, this book brings back to life a group of men who showed immense bravery and endured unimaginable risks behind enemy lines.

Written with the full cooperation of the SAS and with exclusive access to SAS archives, Levine draws on individual stories and personal testimony, including interviews with veterans and family members. On every page, the book gives a visceral sense of what it was like to fight and train in the SAS in both North Africa and Europe during the Second World War, focusing on their failures as well as their successes.

This book is vivid with the characters of the men, their eclectic personalities, their strengths, weaknesses and many disagreements. Levine has uncovered a remarkable portrait of this enigmatic unit with photographs and stories long thought lost to history



Title: The 6.20 Man

Author: David Baldacci

Genre: Thriller

Publisher: Macmillan

Date Published: 2022


About Book: Having survived combat tours in Afghanistan and Iraq and been decorated with medals, Travis Devine leaves the army in mysterious circumstances, under a cloud of suspicion. And at thirty-two years old, he’s swapping fighting the Taliban and Al-Qaeda for a different kind of danger in the cut-throat world of high finance. His daily commute on the 6:20 a.m. train into New York’s financial district, to his new job as an analyst at the powerhouse investment bank Cowl and Comely, takes him into a world where greed, power, jealousy and ambition result in the financial abuse of the masses and the enrichment of an elite few. When a close friend of Devine’s is found dead, the mysterious circumstances surrounding her death at Cowl and Comely compel him to investigate further. As he digs deeper, he discovers strange coincidences and unnerving truths. As the deaths pile up, and the major players show their hands, he must question who he can trust – and who he must fight.



Title: For The Worlds Best Dad


Author: Summersdale Publishers

Genre: Family

Publisher: Summersdale

Date Published: 2021


About Book: Dads deserve a major shout-out for everything that makes them great. This little book, filled with top-quality quotes and standout statements, will let your dad know just how much you love him. It’s the perfect keepsake to remind him that he really is the world’s best dad.







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