Up From Here: Reclaiming the Male Spirit: A Guide to Transforming Emotions into Power and Freedom

In Up from Here, bestselling author Iyanla Vanzant speaks directly to the black men of America, offering specific spiritual tools for transforming themselves into better husbands, fathers, partners, and friends. Assuming that most of the men who pick up this book are already in some kind of crisis, Vanzant writes:

This is what I hope for you: that you'll be able to see that where you are now, dark as it may be, has a purpose.... When you're low there's nowhere to go but up--and together we can go up from here.

Vanzant (In the Meantime) profiles seven men, all with different problems, to show readers how they can dig themselves out of the spiritual messes they make. We meet Roy, whose deep-rooted anger and big-ego attitude get him fired from his job; he's reluctant to take responsibility for any of this. There's Eddie, a 50-year-old "nice guy" who's threatened by the fact that his wife earns more money and recognition than he does. After each profile Vanzant launches into a lengthy section called "Transformation Plan and Power Tools." This is where she dishes out her "up from here" advice, such as "Instead of comparing yourself to others, take an honest assessment of where you are in your life." We like Vanzant because she cuts through black male stereotypes and despair without sugarcoating the fact that spiritual work requires hard and even (gasp) emotional work. Take heart, according to Vanzant: no one has sunk so low that he can't rise up from the crash and burn of his past to claim his true identity and power. --Gail Hudson