Alan Wieder

What happens when a man's inner demons attack him in the 'nads? Alan Weider, Hollywood reality show producer, abruptly walks out on his wife and soon feels ragged claws scurrying up his pant leg as all of his new found freedom (well, if you call staying out late and eating fatty foods freedom) slips away as he becomes increasingly obsessed with the size of his penis. If this review had been written by Alan, you would know the brand of those pants by now. You can be assured that they were not Dockers. You might have even read about how the pants felt against the leather seats of Alan's new Porsche, how they stood up to spills of imported lager and then ended up wadded up under some production assistant/waitress/wannabe whatever's Futon. That is pretty much it for Alan and his devil pants and this would be the end of my review if things hadn't taken a turn midpoint in Alan's tale. For the first half of the book, I found making up facts about the women in Alan's life more interesting and substantial than any disclosure about him or his Miami/New York film school past as he prattles on like the Favreauvian swinger he wants to be. I was bored and unimpressed until he really starts in with the self-abuse. Seriously - regimented, hardcore, stretching and pulling, instructions available for a price on the Internet - ABUSE. Of his "inadequacy." I almost hurt with him. I was repulsed and fascinated. I went online looking for the websites mentioned. I regaled my husband with long, painful passages about exotic techniques that he really, seriously, I swear, DOES NOT NEED and shouldn't even think twice about when he comes across them saved in my browser bookmarks.... We learn a bit about anxiety disorders, OCD, therapy, and that things get better (for a time) when you return to your wife and have a baby and try it all over again. All in all, I was surprised that I kind of liked this book. There is a certain limp honesty there in the end - battered and bruised, smaller than average, but real.… (mais)

What I was expecting when I cracked this book open was a funny and brutally honest memoir about the escapades of a newly single man that eventually finds redemption for his wicked ways yadda yadda yadda.

I have to admit if I had gotten the cookie cutter book I expected I might have felt a bit more satisfied by the last page. What I found instead was a long train of thought that often had me wondering why the author thought we really cared about what he had to say at particular moments. It was incredibly honest and unapologetic, though, which I do appreciate. But there are still only so many times you can say 'Fuck' without it getting old.

The second half of the book was pretty much a lot of rambling on about his penis, which personally I didn't find amusing after the first twenty pages. I found myself thinking, "Alright. You think it's small. What's next?"

And yeah, Alan Wieder does seem like a major ass hole which doesn't do much for the likeability of this book but I can get past it since he isn't boring or predictable. Just someone I wouldn't necessarily call a friend.

So basically my main problem with Year of the Cock is that everything stretches on much too long to be considered interesting anymore, and once all the shock factor is gone there is little substance to hold what is left up.… (mais)

I found this an interesting book with its insights to the male psyche, but I struggled with the way this man's mental meltdown manifested itself. Not having the appendage that became his obsession made it difficult for me to get through parts of the book. But I did get through it. And, to a certain degree, could relate to issues of self image becoming a constant internal struggle. Though I personally have never had it get to the point where I'm completely debilitated by it, it certainly has played a large part on how I project myself to others. It's not an uncommon problem in today's society and many people do go through these self doubts on a daily basis.

He writes with wit and self-deprecating humour which is always a plus for me. The many references to rap and punk music showed how out of touch I am with cutting edge bands, but made me want to research further (not so much the rap, but definitely made me curious about punk). Again, a book that can pique interests in other areas always makes for interesting reading.

The author was trying to prove, initially, that the grass is indeed greener on the other side only to find out that , as most of us already know, it isn't. But that doesn't mean you can't have fun trying to figure it out, right? He learns, in the end, that there is a price to be paid for such experimentation and that it can be a high one.

I think the book is better tailored to a male audience but gives any reader a glimpse into the mind of a man at any given moment. It also perhaps gives men a little acknowledgement that it is okay to admit when things are going wrong and encouragement to do something about it.… (mais)