A Man in FullA Man in Full
Score Modern
What it's about
Charlie Croker, a former college football star turned Atlanta real estate tycoon, is sixty, newly married to a younger woman, and drowning in debt. Meanwhile, in California, a young warehouse worker named Conrad loses his job and ends up in prison, where he discovers the ancient philosophy of Stoicism. And in Atlanta, a Black football star is accused of raping a rich white girl. All these stories collide.
Why it's worth reading
It spent 10 weeks at #1 on the New York Times list and was a National Book Award finalist. It's Tom Wolfe's huge, satirical portrait of money, race and pride in the New South.
You'll love it if you liked
The Corrections
The Great Gatsby
A Thousand Splendid SunsGood to know
It's over 700 pages. The prison scenes include violence and sexual threat.
By the numbers
- Readers25 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics30 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller47 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #1108 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #2042 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Moving, Thought-provoking
More by Tom Wolfe
The Right Stuff
The Bonfire of the Vanities
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid TestIf you like this, read next
Americanah
Alexander Hamilton
My Brilliant Friend
Olive Kitteridge
American Pastoral
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New YorkExplore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is A Man in Full worth reading?
Yes. It spent 10 weeks at #1 on the New York Times list and was a National Book Award finalist. It ranks #2,042 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 63.4 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is A Man in Full about?
Charlie Croker, a former college football star turned Atlanta real estate tycoon, is sixty, newly married to a younger woman, and drowning in debt. Meanwhile, in California, a young warehouse worker named Conrad loses his job and ends up in prison, where he discovers the ancient philosophy of Stoicism. And in Atlanta, a Black football star is accused of raping a rich white girl. All these stories collide.
How long does it take to read A Man in Full?
About 20 hours (804 pages), or about 6 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after A Man in Full?
If you liked it, try The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald or A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.