Warrior, Magician, Lover, King: A Guide To The Male Archetypes Updated For The 21st Century: A guide to men's archetypes, emotions, and the development of the mature masculine in the world today. Paperback – 8 Oct. 2018

Very informative. Clearly written and therefore easy to assimilate. Leaves an emotional as well as an intellectual imprint. Great summaries at the end of the chapters of how to take practical steps to strengthen each of these quarters. A thoroughly balanced overview of the male archetypes and a perfect place to start this study.As a relatively new student to the study of the archetypes I first picked up Moore and Gillette's book (King Warrior Magician Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine) as this seemed to be the right place to start as one of the original texts. I read it from cover to cover. I found it tricky, very heady, I read the words but they did not stick, I didn't seem to assimilate the information intellectually or emotionally...Rod Boothroyd's book was recommended. It is a great read and I got far more from it in terms of understanding than I did from the original. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on the Sovereign, a chapter which gave me chills a number of times. In fact, recently acknowledging my King as a part of me that is always there, and that I can step into at any time, has been quite a revelation. It is the part that is able to hold all the others in love, both those that are working well and those that are maybe in pain and in need of attention.Acknowledging the archetypes at work within me and starting to understand how to fully inhabit them is bringing balance.

This is the best book I have read on this topic. It is both accessible yet comprehensive - an enjoyable and enlightening read

Having spoken to Rod personally, I can confirm that he is a kind man with a warm presence – and this personality certainly comes across in his book. The tone of the book is informative, encouraging and, at times, colloquial. This tone lends us trust in Rod as he reveals profound insights in a relatable way, with soul and personality, and no air of pompous authority. There is often a spiritual essence to his words, in talk of things like “universal mind”, but it is grounded in reality as Rod likes to make references to tribes and evolutionary psychology. Rod speaks with certainty about the things he knows, but sometimes uses words like “perhaps” and “it may be that” when trying to answer difficult questions. Such language shows that Rod does not think his views should be the be-all-and-end-all on this subject, but rather shows humility in that he is aware that his clearly deep understanding is by no means complete. In this way, we are more liable to trust in Rod as we see him as a humble teacher and not an unquestionable guru. In terms of colloquialisms I couldn’t help but laugh when he speaks of “smoking dope” (which I could relate to.)A key point is that Rod’s book is indeed an updated guide for the 21st century, and he is sure to point out the differences in his updated understanding vs the original book by Moore and Gillette. Rod’s book was published in 2018 which is recent, as opposed to Moore and Gillette’s original publication in the 90s.The content itself is practical, relatable and holistic. The archetypes each have their own chapters which cover first the archetype in its fullness, followed by a recounting of the pitfalls, pathways and emotional wounds leading to the inflated, or deflated versions of the archetype, the typical behaviours associated with it, an explanation of the childhood versions of the archetype and a summary. Each chapter ends with a list of detailed, practical methods to strengthen and bring balance to the archetype. In this way, it is simple enough for a reader to identify a particularly unbalanced archetype and begin working on that immediately. The last chapters cover the exploration of shadows and processing of emotional wounds, before presenting a long list of recommended organisations, workshops for men, workshops for women, workshops for mixed groups, books, videos, and facilitators. There is certainly no shortage of resources for those who wish to undertake this work.The book speaks to me, as a man, and as a human being. As Rod suggested in one of his podcasts, these archetypes are built into us and so automatically resonate when we hear them described.In summary, the book is well-structured, with an appropriate and relatable tone to reach the heart of the reader, and give them practical ways to implement their newfound understanding of themselves.

“if you’re not moving forward with a vision for your life or if you’re not taking action in the world to get what you want, then one of two things is probably wrong. First, either your Sovereign doesn’t have a vision that’s powerful enough to motivate him to give orders to your Warrior. Or second, your Warrior isn’t powerful enough to go out into the world and get shit done.”This is one of the many quotes from the book which resonated with me. If you haven’t come across the shadow & the archetypes before, this quote gives you a flavour of the book, which will help you to understand what the archetypes represent & how they may illuminate challenges in your life, and will also provide concrete ideas & resources for making changes.Make no mistake, this is not just an academic text or abstract theory. This brings the concepts to life in a very concrete and down to earth way. There is a gutsy, ‘plain english’ way of writing and it’s a really accessible and practical text overall. For example, a sub-section of a section about the sovereign is called ‘Get Your Balls Back From Anyone Who Has Them.’ And then tells you that this means and how you might go about it.Build your Wolfpack. And make sure Rod is in it.

I read the Gillette / Moore book some time ago and initially questioned why a new version of pretty much the same thing was needed but Wow! Yes! It's good. The Gillette / Moore book (if you're reading this I'm sure you know which one I mean) is good but it was written several decades ago and the understanding of this kind of stuff - and our society itself - has moved on. In my judgement Boothroyd has done a really good job of producing a very good, and easy to read (my 18 year old stepson picked it up and read the whole thing - teenager reads book, that's news in itself isn't it!?) (oh, and he then went and did the ManKind Project thing that the book mentions!)After reading the book I wrote to the author with a couple of (minor) criticisms and when I bought a second copy to give to a friend I saw that there were some changes!Boothroyd is prepared to listen to criticism! I like that!