Richard V. Reeves – författare

A Book of the Year in The Economist and Daily MailA Barack Obama 2024 Summer Reading List Pick'One of the most important non-fiction books of the year' - Sunday TimesBoys are 50% more likely than girls to fail at all three key school subjects: maths, reading and scienceIn the US, the wages of most men are lower today than they were in 1979, while women’s wages have risen across the boardIn the UK, suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 45Boys are falling behind at school and college because the educational system is structed in ways that put them at a disadvantage. Men are struggling in the labour market because of an economic shift away from traditionally male jobs. And fathers are dislocated because the cultural role of family provider has been hollowed out. The male malaise is not the result of a mass psychological breakdown, but of deep structural challenges.Structural challenges require structural solutions, and this is what Richard V. Reeves proposes in Of Boys and Men – starting boys at school a year later than girls; getting more men into caring professions; rethinking the role of fatherhood outside of a nuclear family context.Feminism has done a huge amount of good in the world. We now need its corollary – a positive vision of masculinity that is compatible with gender equality.

Inspire boys to be confident and caring through the biographies of 50 fascinating men, past and present, representing the under-represented fields of health, education, the arts, and literacy (HEAL).Inspired by his own experiences as a father and policy expert, Richard Reeves’s groundbreaking book Of Boys and Men uncovered some of the ways and extents to which boys and men have been falling behind and imagined initiatives like “He Can H.E.A.L.” to inspire boys to pursue paths that they might otherwise feel are inaccessible or inappropriate for them. He says:“Gender equality is not a zero sum game. We can do more for boys and men without doing less for women and girls. We can be passionate about women’s rights, and compassionate towards the struggles of boys and men.”Working with national elementary art educator of the year Jonathan Juravich, Richard puts “He Can H.E.A.L.” into action with Yes, Boys Can!, a book for boys ages 8 to 12 that tells the stories of men who have followed their dreams, cared for others, and changed the world, conveyed through biography, illustration, and simple suggested activities.Here are just a few of the many compassionate and enterprising men introduced:Booker T. Washington – educator and authorLuther Christman – the first man inducted into the American Nursing Association’s Hall of Fame in 2004LeVar Burton – actor and literacy advocateTom Daley – Olympian and knitter While not all the names might be familiar, each of these life stories will inspire boys to fearlessly imagine what kind of man they could be and how they could change the world for good.Because representation matters, and if you don't see it, you can't be it.

Dream Hoarders sparked a national conversation on the dangerous separation between the upper middle class and everyone else. Now in paperback and newly updated for the age of Trump, Brookings Institution senior fellow Richard Reeves is continuing to challenge the class system in America.In America, everyone knows that the top 1 percent are the villains. The rest of us, the 99 percent—we are the good guys. Not so, argues Reeves. The real class divide is not between the upper class and the upper middle class: it is between the upper middle class and everyone else.The separation of the upper middle class from everyone else is both economic and social, and the practice of “opportunity hoarding”—gaining exclusive access to scarce resources—is especially prevalent among parents who want to perpetuate privilege to the benefit of their children. While many families believe this is just good parenting, it is actually hurting others by reducing their chances of securing these opportunities. There is a glass floor created for each affluent child helped by his or her wealthy, stable family. That glass floor is a glass ceiling for another child.Throughout Dream Hoarders, Reeves explores the creation and perpetuation of opportunity hoarding, and what should be done to stop it, including controversial solutions such as ending legacy admissions to school. He offers specific steps toward reducing inequality and asks the upper middle class to pay for it.Convinced of their merit, members of the upper middle class believes they are entitled to those tax breaks and hoarded opportunities. After all, they aren't the 1 percent. The national obsession with the super rich allows the upper middle class to convince themselves that they are just like the rest of America. In Dream Hoarders, Reeves argues that in many ways, they are worse, and that changes in policy and social conscience are the only way to fix the broken system.