Rating: 
Summary: Undiluted truth.
Review: Eldredge's words ring true. I did a lot of soul searching, reading his book, and I could not but conclude that he was right on the money. This book can help every Christian man to be what God intended him to be - a MAN.Some may decry his work as "outdated", but I can safely say that a man has nothing to lose by embracing the ideals of a real masculine life and spirituality embraced in Eldredge's book, and everything to gain. And it is not a difficult task, for Eldredge is right - the standard of masculinity is a man's nature, the androgynous "norm" of society is what is unnatural and forced upon us. Or to put it another way, the Knight-in-Armor is reality, and the quiet, soft male of today is the damnable Fairy Tale, the twisted bedtime horror story. But let us make no mistake, no woman has anything to fear from such a man as Eldredge proposes, neither opression nor violence. Eldredge's work and Eldredge himself both respect women, and the mischaracterization of this book as some "Outlaws of Gor" style chauvinist fantasy manual is simply stupid. It is precisely the "hominophobia", as another reviewer put it, the fear of manhood, which is at work in the negative reviews here. A man is a powerful creature, and so he is also a dangerous one. It is only the craven and twisted soul that would seek to neuter him merely to feel safe. Hats off to you, Mr. Eldredge, and God Bless.
Rating: 
Summary: Wildly off base
Review: Starting with an excellent premise, that being Christian men are sissies, to put it bluntly, Eldredge then diverges into a scripturally inaccurate and humanist philosophy. To sum it up, he basically says that the key to a man's spiritual rebirth is within himself, hidden away from the beginning of time. This ignores the Bible's decisive proclamations about the righteousness THROUGH Christ. Add to this the highly questionable theology(man was not intended for Eden, God NEEDS man's love, the fallen world is an accurate representation of what God originally created) makes this book dangerous and should be read with a discerning heart and a Bible close at hand. Also, his constant pop-culture refrences are vauge at best, illogical often, and distracting.
Rating:
Summary: A must read for everyone
Review: I read this book with a group of unmarried girls. Our leader was married. It is an amazing book. I think every person should read this book before going into marriage. After reading it I bought it for my dad and he read it twice. If will change any relationship you have. It's wonderful and amazing.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for women too
Review: This book was given to me by a guy friend to help me understand my husband better and did it ever! It helped me vocalize many of the feelings I had been having about our relationship and how my husband deals with things. It also helped me vocalize to my husband my feelings about me as a Christian woman and what I desired from him as a Christian man. It is a quick read but some of the first chapters were kind of slow to me. They were more towards the male readers. The best chapter for me was The Wound. I also liked the way it brought in everyday life. Not everyone goes to church every Sunday and Wednesday. I did find it enlightening.
Rating:
Summary: Christian men wear pants
Review: Where did men get the idea that we have to sacrifice our masculinity to be "good Christians"? In an age where gender roles are increasingly smudged and distorted, would you rather be a spineless, toothless Nice Guy or a Manly Man with a solid identity and knowledge of God's purpose in your life? John Eldredge challenges us as Christian men to rediscover the passions of our youth. Christianity is not a prison of rules, regulations and restrictions; it is a battle to be won, an adventure to be experienced. Eldredge puts us in front of a mirror that reflects the person we were meant to be. He enhances a sound scriptural base with an eclectic collection of movie clips, song lyrics, poetry and literature. Where else would C.S. Lewis and Oswald Chambers meet George Thorogood and the Dixie Chicks? Those who scream heresy when Eldredge supports his arguments with contemporary, non-scriptural analogies just don't get it. He is not steering the reader away from scripture; he is making it more accessible and applicable to the reader. While this book will be most beneficial to men, I think women will get a lot out of this book as well, getting a better idea of how their man is really wired. No more Mister Nice Guy. Get Wild! Larry Hehn, Author of Get the Prize: Nine Keys for a Life of Victory
Rating: 
Summary: Wild departure from biblical theology
Review: Wild at heart claims men want to be warriors and that is their role. Yes, we are all (women and men) warriors in the Lord's army, but yet in his book, Bible study and intercessory prayer aren't what is lifted up. Adventure is more the course of action. Men are urged even to be like the men in immoral movies. Very little scripture is highlighted in this book and the theology lifts up idols of the heart. Watch for how many times the men and women are people who want something for themselves, long for, and live for something. Watch what they worship according to him, it is not God, but actually, the idols of their hearts of what they want, what they feel, what they desire, and what they crave. It is rather self-centered and it is humanistic rather than God-centered. The book is sad in it's description of women. Women are seen as wanting a man only to rescue her, love her, and take care of her and protect her. I would be sinning terribly to be a woman who was so dependant on man instead of God. It really acts as if women are just waiting for a man. It doesn't make people who are single, widowed or divorced have a chance for living out their role unless they are WANTING a man to be with them. It would make most women very very sad to really review how shallow they are viewed. God provides all those things that we need and this book makes women to appear weak. Women are also warriors in scripture and have been part of the adventure through intercessory prayer for years. The thing about beauty was very disturbing and would really hurt most women. Most men think of beauty as only flesh. This book fosters men holding the beauty of women, but men were probably thinking mostly of sexual things when they read that. Real beauty is a women's or man's deep love of God. Women are made also in the image of God and don't want an adventure to share but are called to be in unity with any of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. While this may make men feel better, it may make men love their wives more, it really misses the mark theologically and doesn't give much respect to the high calling of women and men as equal saints who are not to want but are to give. They are to love, not want to be loved, they are to take responsibility for their walk.
Rating:
Summary: A much needed review of Christian Manhood
Review: I liked this book because Eldredge gives men encouragement to be themselves without any guild about it. God knows how much guilt is thrown at today's Christian men. I believe Eldredge is right in many ways when it comes to the condition of most of them men you find in Christian churches (I cannot speak about any other kinds). I know that many of them would benefit from reading this book. It is a book for someone who is willing to think about things in a self-examinng way, and from a historical perspective as well.
Rating:
Summary: Generates Good Discussions But Book Is Lacking
Review: If you are part of a good solid Christian men's small group or Sunday school - get the book and go through it together. As long as you keep in mind what the foundation is (see the Bible) you should do fine. Many of the points that Eldredge does bring up are items that men need to address. Men should be more active in church and I agree - the majority of churches are run by women, that is they are doing most of the work from organizing the pot lucks to teaching the Sunday School classes. More men need to get out of the church leadership positions and get their hands in the ministry of the church. However ... Eldredge loses the intense thoughts and discussions points a little over half way through. For whatever reason his wheels fall off and worse yet, his last chapter just kind of died on the branch. It is like he ran out of stuff to say. Did not close the book out well. Eldredge mentioned in his book about a speaker he heard at a PK event by the name of Gordon Dalbey - Healing of the Masculine Soul (ISBN 084993257). It is easy to see why. Dalbey's book was written in 1991 and covers a lot of the same issues that Eldredge does. However, Dalbey is more biblical in his approach and in my view gets down to the real issues at hand - sin. In fact Dalbey's 1st chapter made me think much more than all of Eldredge's chapters combined. Eldredge's book is a quick read. It is not perfect by any stretch but does make you think - and that is always good. If you can find it used - buy it and read it. Would not pay the full price for it. Just my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent guide for any man searching for his true self
Review: The negative comments posted about this book really miss the mark. This book encourages men to be who they are...to be dangerous not in a tradition meaning of the word. Be a dangerously good husband and father...go to the extreme to do what is right. Be there for your wife, treat her right (God says so and John points that out), pursue her and love her as yourself. Be there for your kids and let, don't be an absent father, and be loving and caring to them. John embraces humility! This is an excellent book and hits the nail square on the head!
Rating:
Summary: Dangerous.
Review: This is a dangerous book. Just read some of these reviews, and you'll get that picture. Yes, dangerous. Like a scalpel. Do you have what it takes to read it and use it for good, not evil?
| 
