20 Great Reads for Guyentine's Day

Romance for bros and books about male friendship

Men and boys in our culture are often conditioned to maintain a tough exterior, making it challenging for them to form close friendships with other men. That's why Guyentine's Day, celebrated on February 13, is so important. It's all about ditching the toxic masculinity, letting your guard down, and connecting with the friends who make you feel seen.

Celebrate your best buds this year with exclusive new Guyentine's Day designed ThriftBooks e-Gift Cards, because nothing's better than bonding over a good book. Or select something perfect for your brothers from another mother from one of these curated lists especially tailored to male readers.

10 books about close male friendships

These novels feature close bonds between men who are strong enough to share their vulnerabilities with one another.

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry
Longtime friends Woodrow F. Call and Augustus "Gus" McCrae are two famous Texas Rangers living in a small Texas town in the late 1870s. Restless in retirement, Call convinces Gus to join him on one last adventure driving a herd north to establish the first cattle ranch in the pristine Montana Territory.

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
In the summer of 1953, eleven-year-old Owen Meany is playing a baseball game in Gravesend, New Hampshire. When he hits a foul ball, it strikes his best friend Johnny's mother and kills her. Despite this tragedy, the two boys forge an enduring bond becoming closer than brothers in the years to come.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Four college classmates—broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition—pursue their dreams in New York. A hymn to brotherly bonds and a masterful depiction of love in the twenty-first century, this searing novel is about the families we are born into, and those that we make for ourselves.

Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby
With little else in common other than a criminal past and a love for their murdered sons, two ex-cons join forces. In their quest to do better for their sons in death than they did in life, Ike and Buddy Lee confront their own prejudices as they rain down vengeance upon those who hurt their boys.

Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian
British naval officer Jack Aubrey earns his first appointment as commander. After a heated first meeting, Aubrey appoints the brilliant but destitute physician Stephen Maturin as his naval surgeon and the two men strike up an unlikely rapport. This epic novel, set amidst the Napoleonic Wars, begins the Aubrey & Maturin series.

The White Boy Shuffle by Paul Beatty
This hilarious and scathing coming-of-age novel centers on Gunnar Kaufman, an awkward, Black teenage surf bum who is forced to wise up when his mother moves from suburban Santa Monica to urban West Los Angeles. There, he begins to undergo a startling transformation.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
The unforgettable, heartbreaking story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father's servant, caught in the tragic sweep of history, this modern classic transports readers to Afghanistan at a tense and crucial moment of change and destruction.

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
When Elwood Curtis, a black boy growing up in 1960s Tallahassee, is unfairly sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, he finds himself trapped in a grotesque chamber of horrors. Within this perilous prison, Elwood's only salvation is his friendship with fellow "delinquent" Turner.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
George is "small and quick and dark of face"; Lennie, a man of tremendous size, has the mind of a young child. Yet they have formed a "family," clinging together in the face of hardship. Laborers in California's dusty vegetable fields, the unlikely pair have a plan: to own an acre of land and a shack they can call their own.

Jesus' Son: Stories by Denis Johnson
This collection of blistering and indelible tales chronicles a wild netherworld of addicts and lost souls, a violent and disordered landscape that encompasses every extreme of American culture. These are stories of transcendence and spiraling grief, of hallucinations and glories, of getting lost and found and lost again.

10 great romance reads for guys

Contrary to popular belief, our recent Romance Revealed readers' poll showed that guys are actually bigger romance fans than the ladies. Here are some great love stories recommended specifically for men.

Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts
Boston lawyer Eli Landon has weathered an intense year after being a suspect in the murder of his soon-to-be ex-wife. He finds sanctuary at Bluff House, his family's Whiskey Beach estate, and in Abra Walsh, a local woman of many talents—including helping Eli take control of his life and clear his name.

Tangled by Emma Chase
Drew Evans makes multimillion-dollar business deals and seduces New York's most beautiful women with an easy smile. But when Katherine Brooks is hired as the new associate at Drew's father's investment banking firm, every aspect of the dashing playboy's life is thrown into a tailspin.

We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian
Nick Russo has worked his way from a rough Brooklyn neighborhood to a reporting job at one of the city's biggest newspapers. But the late 1950s are a hostile time for gay men, and Nick knows that he can't let anyone into his life. He just never counted on meeting someone as impossible to say no to as Andy.

The Rosie Project (#1 in the Don Tillman series) by Graeme Simsion
When Don, a brilliant yet socially inept professor of genetics, decides it's time he found a wife, he goes about it in the evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things. But when charismatic Rosie whirls unexpectedly into his life, it throws his orderly process into chaos.

Scoring with the Wrong Twin (#1 in the WAGS series) by Naima Simone
After a bad break-up, pro football player Zeph has trust issues. At a routine photoshoot for work, he's surprised to find himself attracted to the model he'd previously dismissed as vain and spoiled. What he doesn't know is that shy, awkward Sophia has swapped places with her identical twin.

American Dreamer by Adriana Herrera
No one ever said big dreams come easy. For Nesto Vasquez, moving his Afro-Caribbean food truck from New York City to the wilds of Upstate New York is a huge gamble. When librarian Jude Fuller visits the new lunch spot everyone is raving about, he finds a surprising connection with the sexy food truck owner.

Only When It's Us (#1 in the Bergman Brothers series) by Chloe Liese
From the moment Willa sat next to Ryder in class, she's made it clear she hates his guts. And that suits him fine. She's just the kind of feisty tempting chaos he doesn't need in his quiet, tidy life. But when they're forced to work together on their final project, they start to catch unexpected feelings.

In a Jam by Kate Canterbary
Noah Barden loved Shay Zucconi back in high school. But he was too shy and awkward to even tell her. A lifetime later, Noah is a single dad to his niece and has his hands full running the family business. His old crush is the farthest thing from his mind. Until Shay returns to their hometown and turns his life upside down.

The Bromance Book Club (#1 in the Bromance Book Club series) by Lyssa Kay Adams
The first rule of book club: You don't talk about book club. Nashville Legends second baseman Gavin Scott's marriage is in major league trouble. Distraught and desperate, Gavin finds help from an unlikely source: a secret romance book club made up of Nashville's top alpha men.

The Right Swipe (#1 in the Modern Love series) by Alisha Rai
Despite the occasional hookup, dating app creator Rhiannon Hunter keeps her own heart carefully protected. But after spending one glorious night with former pro football player Samson Lima, she can't help but be hurt when he ghosts her. When he surfaces again months later, things get even more complicated.

#ShareBookLove—Give a book. Get a book.

Another way to connect with your friends over good literature is with our #ShareBookLove program. When you refer a friend to sign up for ReadingRewards^® and they spend $30, you BOTH get a FREE BOOK Reward! Happy Guyentine's Day from us!

Read more by Ashly Moore Sheldon