Tough Guys, Bad Dudes, and Other Men My Father Knew
Promotional Download

At the request of the author, for the next few weeks, The UnsafeCompany and UnsafeWords has agreed to make Tough Guys, Bad Dudes, and Other Men My Father Knew available in PDF format, free of charge, to those who’ve been provided this link.

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Tough Guys, Bad Dudes, and Other Men My Father Knew
A Farewell to My Old Man and to Old School Masculinity
by Lonnie Ray Atkinson

How does one break with generational misconceptions of what it means to be a man without losing all that was worth being learned? How do you come to terms with the severity of the damage while still holding onto the memory of the loved one who passed it to you?

Tough Guys, Bad Dudes, and Other Men My Father Knew juxtaposes old school stories of bar brawlers, shit talkers, and all manner of Southern macho motherfucker alongside intimate reflections on authority, alcoholism, and abuse.

For readers who recognize a piece of their own father/father figure in these stories and know firsthand the struggle of trying to be better than just “a little better,” consider these pages a testimony to the permission we rarely grant ourselves when attempting to say a proper goodbye.

While the PDF version of the book is free, you are always welcome to buy a physical copy or provide the author whatever gift you deem reasonable. For the duration of the promotion, all voluntary gifts will go directly to the author.