Book review: “SWOLE” by Michael Brodeur | Features

SWOLE: The Making of Man and the Importance of Muscles. By Michael Brodeur. Beacon Press. 256 pages. $28.95.

In his book Swole: The Making of Men and the Meaning of Muscles, author Michael Brodeur takes the gym too seriously and not seriously at all at the same time to show readers that the online world of hypermasculinity is an illusion.

Brodeur takes his readers through the history of weightlifting and the role of men in society through his autobiography. He’s a middle-aged Gen-X guy who calls himself a “muscle guy” and boasts about the depth of his squats and the size of his biceps and butt, but is also a classical music critic for the Washington Post and a gay man.

These competing identities are a common thread throughout Brodeur’s “Swole.” The narrative works most of the time, but at times Brodeur’s chapters feel like miniature essays on a broader theme of masculinity rather than a comprehensive whole.

He celebrates the male body and men’s desire to be bigger and stronger. Using humor and the history of idols like Arnold Schwarzenegger, He-Man and professional wrestling, he shows how men’s identity has evolved since his childhood, when he struggled with his own sexual orientation.

Brodeur seems to reject the modern gym industry, which often sells a certain version of the ideal body: a place where calorie counting is perfected, macronutrients are measured, and micro-targeting of muscle groups is a must.

Instead, Brodeur encourages readers to strive for the ideal they desire, to feel comfortable looking in the mirror, and to know that it’s OK to feel a little embarrassed while doing so.

“Swole” allows men to celebrate masculinity as they wish to define it.