{"product_id":"we-need-to-hang-out-billy-baker-9781982111083","title":"We Need to Hang Out: A Memoir of Making Friends","description":"\u003cb\u003eIn this \"entertaining mix of social science, memoir, and humor, as if a Daniel Goleman book were filtered through the lens of Will Ferrell\" (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e) a middle-aged man embarks on an entertaining and relatable quest to reprioritize his ties with his buddies and forge new friendships, all while balancing work, marriage, and kids.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAt the age of forty, having settled into his busy career and active family life, Billy Baker discovers that he's lost something crucial along the way: his friends. Other priorities always seemed to come first, until all his close friendships became distant memories. When he takes an assignment to write an article about the modern loneliness epidemic, he realizes just how common it is to be a middle-aged loner: almost fifty million Americans over the age of forty-five, especially men, suffer from chronic loneliness, which the surgeon general has declared one of the nation's \"greatest pathologies,\" worse than smoking, obesity, or heart disease in increasing a person's risk for premature death. Determined to defy these odds, Baker vows to salvage his lost friendships and blaze a path for men (and women) everywhere to improve their relationships old and new. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom leading a buried treasure hunt with his old college crew to organizing an impromptu \"ditch day\" for dozens of his former high school classmates to essentially starting a frat house for middle-aged guys in his neighborhood, Baker experiments with ways to keep in touch with his friends no matter how hectic their lives are--with surprising and deeply satisfying results. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlong the way, he talks to experts in sociology and psychology to investigate how such naturally social creatures as humans could become so profoundly isolated today. And he turns to real-life experts in lasting friendship, bravely joining a cruise packed entirely with crowds of female BFFs and learning the secrets of male bonding from a group of older dudes who faithfully meet up on the same night every week. \"A refreshing and entertaining personal perspective on why men need male friends\" (\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e, starred review), \u003ci\u003eWe Need to Hang Out\u003c\/i\u003e is a celebration of companionship that is bursting with humor, candor, and charm.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Billy Baker\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1982111089\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781982111083\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Avid Reader Press \/ Simon \u0026amp; Schuster\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/26\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 224\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.70lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.70w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e 02\/05\/2021","brand":"Billy Baker","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44050751324415,"sku":"9781982111083","price":27.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_4709d945-a808-4091-aff3-ba261f499640.jpg?v=1685009029","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/we-need-to-hang-out-billy-baker-9781982111083","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}