Awards

• Long-listed for Nib Literary Award 2020 (Australia)

Overview

In Women, Men & the Whole Damn Thing, author David Leser presents an essential and incisive investigation that unearths the roots of misogyny, its inextricable links to the patriarchy, and how history brought us to the #MeToo movement and the wave of incandescent female rage sweeping the globe. Crucially, he also interrogates his own psyche, privilege, and culpability as he bears witness to the 'collective wound of the world' and how we might move towards healing. This book calls on men (yes, all men) to be accountable for their contribution to the continuing oppression of women by the patriarchal structures that have dominated our culture historically, right through to the present moment. He argues that female oppression is the greatest moral issue of our times and that we are all responsible for dismantling the structures that cause such oppression. This book is one man's journey into how to grapple with both the personal and collective aftermath of #MeToo and the new future that beckons. Including interviews with Tina Brown, Zainab Salbi, Marlene Schiappa and Helen Garner, among other globally recognized names, Women, Men & the Whole Damn Thing is a bold, honest and self-searching overview of the cultural moment we find ourselves in. 'So timely, connecting and regularly sublime that it feels like it was written as much for my mates and I as it was for my daughters. Resolutely human. Utterly essential. Wholly unputdownable.' - Trent Dalton, author of Boy Swallows Universe 'I want to hire a plane and air-drop this book onto footy ovals, board-rooms, electoral offices and boys' schools.' - Benjamin Law, journalist, author 'A brave plunge into deep waters: a tough, thorough, tender-even loving-book.' - Robert Drewe, author of The Shark Net 'If you are a mum of a boy, I think you need to read this book. If you are the mum of a girl, I think you need to read this book. If you are a woman, I think you need to read this book. Especially, if you are a man, I think you need to read this book.' - Justine Armstrong, founder of Fearless Speaking ' At last, a man has listened and understood.' - Jane Caro, social commentator 'This book got under my skin and into my heart. Every man in the country needs to read it.' - Tom Harkin, CEO, Tomorrow Man 'Staggering in its range and depth. A landmark book.' - Steve Biddulph, best-selling author 'I thought my relationship with women was fine, however, through [David's] words he challenged my internal dialogue. He educated me, provoked my vulnerabilities and ultimately encouraged me to be better.' - Tom Harley, CEO, Sydney Swans 'I have not met a more important male advocate for how we navigate a more inclusive future together.' - Sam Mostyn, Governor-General of Australia

Full Product Details

9781760877729

Table of Contents

Reviews

'I started reading this book with my heart in my mouth and finished it with a sense of profound relief. At last, a man has listened and understood. David Leser has taken women, their lives, their pain, their fears and their desires as seriously as he takes his own. It is all we ask.' - JANE CARO, author of Accidental Feminists 'One of our finest longform journalists-certainly our deepest-divesinto the treacherous waters of #MeToo (and then some) and emerges with something so timely, connecting and regularly sublime that it feels like it was written as much for me and my mates as it was for my daughters. Resolutely human. Utterly essential. Wholly unputdownable.' - TRENT DALTON, author of Boy Swallows Universe 'It takes courage-arguably even folly-for a man to explore and interrogate #MeToo. The brilliance of David Leser though, is he never forgets to interrogate himself either. Instead of avoiding the complications, nuances and contradictions of a seismic cultural moment, Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing leans into them. This clarifying and precise book will leave everyone - but especially fellow men - deeply uncomfortable with the questions posed, and the destabilising answers reached. I want to hire a plane and airdrop this book onto footy ovals, boardrooms, electoral offices and boys' schools.' - BENJAMIN LAW, author of The Family Law 'Staggering in its range and depth. Leser sets out the whole horror story, the shocking scale of centuries of violence to women and girls. But he offers real hope at the same time...A landmark book.' STEVE BIDDULPH, psychologist and author of Raising Boys in the Twenty-first Century 'David Leser has for years been one of Australia's finest long-form journalists, and here he takes on one of the most important subjects of our time. What begins as an examination of the global #MeToo movement turns into a poignant, sometimes personal and often horrifying deep dive into past and present masculinity and ""the mess of human relations"" that's left in its wake. In grappling with these monumental themes, Leser is at one point advised by writer Helen Garner to ""just humbly approach the mountain and go up it"". Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing does reach a summit in this ever-fluid, ongoing debate, and the view it offers forces you to rethink almost everything you thought you knew about female/male relationships, and plants a flag of hope for the future.' - MATTHEW CONDON, author of Three Crooked Kings 'Brilliantly argued, fiercely lucid, there won't be a more vital book this decade. Nor one to be more widely read, argued with, felt - and comprehended. Leser captures our need to wake up finally to the most ancient harming of all: men's conditioned and often dangerously aggressive attitudes towards women-and themselves. Pushing boundaries or leaping them, Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing illuminates changes every bit as urgent as rescuing the planet-which is utterly interdependent with them.' - STEPHANIE DOWRICK, author of Intimacy and Solitude and Seeking the Sacred 'David isn't an ideologue finding evidence to support a conclusion he's already arrived at. As ever he's a fearless searcher after the truth in a complex situation. He's horrified as he unearths the grim statistics of male violence and mistreatment of women, but at the same time concerned that #MeToo can tip over into lynch mob mentality, condemning lesser crimes with the same ferocity as greater ones. But his final verdict is unequivocal. #MeToo is a necessary clarion call that male/female relationships need urgent restructuring, not just for the good of women, but to benefit us all.' - DAVID WILLIAMSON, playwright 'As we agonise over the breadth and complexity of the volcanic eruption captured by the #MeToo movement, David Leser has given us a gift - the gift of deeply considered thinking. This book is a triumph of storytelling, painstaking research, personal vulnerability and nuance. I did not really believe anyone could do justice to the size and scope of this topic, and David has proved me mightily wrong. As I pored over every page I variously felt enraged, sorrowful, entertained, respectful and, at the last, hopeful.' - AUDETTE EXEL, Founder of the Adara Group, former Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year and Australian Philanthropist of the Year. 'Curiosity, courage and candour are David Leser's great strengths as a journalist. Here, he sets out to understand the explosion of female fury that is the #MeToo movement and ends up asking himself some tough questions. A wistful one too: should he have asked the beautiful stranger on the French train to have a drink with him?' - JANE CADZOW, journalist 'An important read for anybody interested in a real dialogue and a real engagement on how to move forward in a #MeToo era. The fact that it is written by a man who is aware of his privileges and led by his curiosity for a genuine understanding makes it all the more important.' - ZAINAB SALBI, author of Between Two Worlds and executive editor and host of #MeToo, Now What? 'David Leser has written the book a man needed to write. He has a deep ethical understanding of discrimination against women. He cares about that injustice. But he also cares about how men themselves can be part of the solution. Compassionate, incisive and beautifully written.' - PROFESSOR CATHARINE LUMBY, academic, author and journalist 'A brave plunge into deep waters: a tough, thorough, tender - even loving - book.' - ROBERT DREWE, author of The Shark Net 'A masterfully nuanced and deeply insightful look at how we arrived - and where to from here - in this post-#MeToo world.' - LISA WILKINSON

I started reading this book with my heart in my mouth and finished it with a sense of profound relief. At last, a man has listened and understood. David Leser has taken women, their lives, their pain, their fears and their desires as seriously as he takes his own. It is all we ask. -- Jane Caro, author of ACCIDENTAL FEMINISTS One of our finest longform journalists-certainly our deepest-divesinto the treacherous waters of #MeToo (and then some) and emerges with something so timely, connecting and regularly sublime that it feels like it was written as much for me and my mates as it was for my daughters. Resolutely human. Utterly essential. Wholly unputdownable. -- Trent Dalton Staggering in its range and depth. Leser sets out the whole horror story, the shocking scale of centuries of violence to women and girls. But he offers real hope at the same time...A landmark book. -- Steve Biddulph, author of RAISING BOYS IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

'I started reading this book with my heart in my mouth and finished it with a sense of profound relief. At last, a man has listened and understood. David Leser has taken women, their lives, their pain, their fears and their desires as seriously as he takes his own. It is all we ask.' - JANE CARO, author of Accidental Feminists 'One of our finest longform journalists-certainly our deepest-divesinto the treacherous waters of #MeToo (and then some) and emerges with something so timely, connecting and regularly sublime that it feels like it was written as much for me and my mates as it was for my daughters. Resolutely human. Utterly essential. Wholly unputdownable.' - TRENT DALTON, author of Boy Swallows Universe 'It takes courage-arguably even folly-for a man to explore and interrogate #MeToo. The brilliance of David Leser though, is he never forgets to interrogate himself either. Instead of avoiding the complications, nuances and contradictions of a seismic cultural moment, Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing leans into them. This clarifying and precise book will leave everyone - but especially fellow men - deeply uncomfortable with the questions posed, and the destabilising answers reached. I want to hire a plane and airdrop this book onto footy ovals, boardrooms, electoral offices and boys' schools.' - BENJAMIN LAW, author of The Family Law 'Staggering in its range and depth. Leser sets out the whole horror story, the shocking scale of centuries of violence to women and girls. But he offers real hope at the same time...A landmark book.' STEVE BIDDULPH, psychologist and author of Raising Boys in the Twenty-first Century 'David Leser has for years been one of Australia's finest long-form journalists, and here he takes on one of the most important subjects of our time. What begins as an examination of the global #MeToo movement turns into a poignant, sometimes personal and often horrifying deep dive into past and present masculinity and the mess of human relations that's left in its wake. In grappling with these monumental themes, Leser is at one point advised by writer Helen Garner to just humbly approach the mountain and go up it . Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing does reach a summit in this ever-fluid, ongoing debate, and the view it offers forces you to rethink almost everything you thought you knew about female/male relationships, and plants a flag of hope for the future.' - MATTHEW CONDON, author of Three Crooked Kings 'Brilliantly argued, fiercely lucid, there won't be a more vital book this decade. Nor one to be more widely read, argued with, felt - and comprehended. Leser captures our need to wake up finally to the most ancient harming of all: men's conditioned and often dangerously aggressive attitudes towards women-and themselves. Pushing boundaries or leaping them, Women, Men and the Whole Damn Thing illuminates changes every bit as urgent as rescuing the planet-which is utterly interdependent with them.' - STEPHANIE DOWRICK, author of Intimacy and Solitude and Seeking the Sacred 'David isn't an ideologue finding evidence to support a conclusion he's already arrived at. As ever he's a fearless searcher after the truth in a complex situation. He's horrified as he unearths the grim statistics of male violence and mistreatment of women, but at the same time concerned that #MeToo can tip over into lynch mob mentality, condemning lesser crimes with the same ferocity as greater ones. But his final verdict is unequivocal. #MeToo is a necessary clarion call that male/female relationships need urgent restructuring, not just for the good of women, but to benefit us all.' - DAVID WILLIAMSON, playwright 'As we agonise over the breadth and complexity of the volcanic eruption captured by the #MeToo movement, David Leser has given us a gift - the gift of deeply considered thinking. This book is a triumph of storytelling, painstaking research, personal vulnerability and nuance. I did not really believe anyone could do justice to the size and scope of this topic, and David has proved me mightily wrong. As I pored over every page I variously felt enraged, sorrowful, entertained, respectful and, at the last, hopeful.' - AUDETTE EXEL, Founder of the Adara Group, former Telstra NSW Business Woman of the Year and Australian Philanthropist of the Year. 'Curiosity, courage and candour are David Leser's great strengths as a journalist. Here, he sets out to understand the explosion of female fury that is the #MeToo movement and ends up asking himself some tough questions. A wistful one too: should he have asked the beautiful stranger on the French train to have a drink with him?' - JANE CADZOW, journalist 'An important read for anybody interested in a real dialogue and a real engagement on how to move forward in a #MeToo era. The fact that it is written by a man who is aware of his privileges and led by his curiosity for a genuine understanding makes it all the more important.' - ZAINAB SALBI, author of Between Two Worlds and executive editor and host of #MeToo, Now What? 'David Leser has written the book a man needed to write. He has a deep ethical understanding of discrimination against women. He cares about that injustice. But he also cares about how men themselves can be part of the solution. Compassionate, incisive and beautifully written.' - PROFESSOR CATHARINE LUMBY, academic, author and journalist 'A brave plunge into deep waters: a tough, thorough, tender - even loving - book.' - ROBERT DREWE, author of The Shark Net 'A masterfully nuanced and deeply insightful look at how we arrived - and where to from here - in this post-#MeToo world.' - LISA WILKINSON

Author Information

David Leser is an Australian journalist, author, public interviewer and keynote speaker. A former Middle East and North American correspondent he has been a journalist for 45 years and become widely known in Australia for his in-depth profiles and stories on social and political issues. He has interviewed everyone from Meryl Streep, Germaine Greer and Bruce Springsteen to Gina Rinehart, Anna Murdoch, Alan Jones and the Dalai Lama. David is the recipient of numerous awards for his journalism and his memoir To Begin To Know: Walking in the Shadows of my Father, was shortlisted for the National Biography Award in 2015.

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