And Chandler Burr gave it a strongly positive reviewāmy publisher says the review qualifies as a raveāin yesterday's Washington Post:
In āAmerican Savage,ā thereās a telling passage on monogamy. Dan Savage, who has written the sex advice column āSavage Loveā for more than 20 years, states, āMy husband Terry and I are mostly monogamous... There are timesācertain set and limited circumstancesāwhen it is permissible for us to have sex with others.ā Thatās representative of Savageās franknessāstartling, disarming, suicidal or courageous, depending on your perspective. Iām not aware of anyone with his degree of public presence who so frankly, even cheerfully, offers a contrary view to apple-pie norms. Unsurprisingly, Savage has a reputation as a bomb thrower. āAmerican Savageā shows why that perception is suprisingly misleading.Savage is aware of his rep. And he has a ball with it. He quotes Fox News host Mike Huckabee describing him as āunnecessarily rude, vile, and angry.ā Then he merrily replies: āHave you seen my husband in a Speedo. . . ? Rest assured that Iām a happy person, Mike.ā And he rips gleefully through the hypocrisy of condemning gay people by selectively quoting the Bible.
But these pyrotechnics are actually where āAmerican Savageā is least interesting. Weāve heard the traded insults before. And if youāve already read multiple times about how the Bible has been used to justify every possible position on every subject, itās not much different in Savage style. āAmerican Savageā is best when it is most unusual, an extraordinarily personal, deeply felt book about traditional marriage, authentic and healthy religion and a traditional sex life.
Please go read the rest of the Burr's review.
I'm speaking at the New York Public Library tonightāin conversation with Andrew Sullivanāand in Seattle at Town Hall on June 16. Ari Shapiro is coming to town for the Seattle event. Info here and tickets here.