James May's Man Lab: The Book of Usefulness

For at least two decades now modern man has been on the brink of a crisis. Persuaded by both the post-feminist political landscape and his representation in the popular media to remodel himself as an endearingly hopeless halfwit, he now exists only as an object of pity.

James and his happy band of brothers (plus a few women, but we try to edit them out) are engaged on a quest to lead maledom to a broad sunlit upland strewn with slim books of English verse and neatly stacked with correctly sharpened tools arranged in descending size order. From here they confront the mysteries of romance and fashion, the cult of men's cooking and the daunting underworld of hardcore DIY. Read it and remember that, as a chap, your first duty is to be dependable. And then you can have a pint.

James May is a writer, broadcaster and co-host ofTop Gearon BBC2. He writes a weekly column in theDaily Telegraphand has presented series for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky.