Kindle Edition Amazon The 85% Man 85PercentMan.com Amazon.com Category:  Relationships Publisher: CreateSpace ISBN-10:  1489553401 Pages: 304 Copyright: October 1, 2011 ISBN-13: 9781489553409 Price: $9.99 (eBook) An homage to great moms, dads, military families and a quest for unconditional love. Everything my mother told me about women is true...and I can prove it. Available in paperback, Kindle and audio (Audible.com & iTunes) versions. The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is Bob Mack Peak’s well-crafted, uplifting, heart-felt romantic epic—a lighthearted look at differences between men and women. Peak validates the open proposition "Everything my mother told me about women is true... and I can prove it." The book’s flowing narrative offers the reader a delightful journey toward discovering life's truest reward—unconditional love. The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille finds a parallel and rampart through the life of the author’s parents, a part of The Greatest Generation. Raised during the hardships of the Great Depression, they built a terrific life with beloved children, yet suffered terrible losses toward the end of their lives. Readers who adore the films Terms of Endearment or The Help, will fall in love with Peak’s book. Peak offers guidelines rather than rules to help women, men, and couples to “love long and prosper.” The 85% Man is uniquely different from similar books of the relationship, self-help and romantic genres written by a plethora of PhD’s and various authors. Peak draws upon personalized experiences supported by the timeless, sage advice of the author’s mother, Lucille. This book will help readers achieve a useful perspective on what’s genuine in life and love.  Displaying his gift for honestly communicating deeply moving experiences, Peak carefully navigates the ups and downs of his relationships. Peak relates his ex-wives to “experimental flights,” since his birthday coincides with Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in the X-1 test plane on October 14th. The author’s “EXs” were not dissimilar to unstable test planes that often crash. Some of his “relationship crashes” left no survivors, while others smashups provided the genesis of a phoenix-like rebirth. Perhaps best of all, the book references a link to the website www.85PercentMan.com featuring a section where visitors can calculate how their man scores, and discover WWLS (What Would Lucille Say).       Excerpt PREFACE Everything my mother told me about women is true...and I can prove it. NO ONE IS SMARTER OR COOLER THAN A MOM, and my mother, Lucille Elizabeth Peak, was no exception. Lucille’s Lessons may have originated from reading books and magazines, watching TV, listening to the radio, or from her fondness for talking to everyone like they were her best friend. But much of her genius was instilled from her childhood at the elbow of a wise father, the arms of a loving mother, and her life experiences at a very young age. Every event was absorbed and distilled for wisdom on demand. The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is about prospering through every possible phase of dating, marriage and divorce, children, and romance in the Internet age. And, most importantly, confronting the truth about yourself. Whether in casual afterschool chats or questions about topics I couldn’t decipher on my own, Lucille delivered up pearls of wisdom that would resonate with me all of my life. Regardless of their derivation, to me, Lucille’s Lessons were sage original wisdoms to guide me on my life’s journey. In my youth, I did not take parental advice to heart. After all, what your parents told you not to do—drinking, smoking, having sex, partying after midnight, driving too fast, dating the wrong person—was always so much fun. Why listen to them? Time would answer that question. My quest for a relationship like my parents’ has spanned three decades with a couple of marriages, several long-term romances, hundreds of online introductions, many fix-ups via friends, chance encounters, and dating service introductions. During my searches, either early on, during, or at the end of a connection, Lucille’s words would bubble up in my brain. When I started online dating, I began to document each meeting. Initially it was to remember introductory phone conversations or information women had posted in their profiles. Later, my notes became required reading to track preliminary information versus actual meetings. In the absence of a second date or at the end of any extended connection, my choice or theirs, Lucille’s observations started to form a pattern. Mom’s tutelage became a serious guide for nipping dating disasters in the bud. In the worst cases, her lessons became hindsight regrets for I should have listened to my mother. DON'T GO DOWN ALONE YOU’RE A CHARACTER IN A SCARY MOVIE. You find yourself at the top of the stairway to the basement. The camera perspective looks up from a pitch black. You flick the light switch up and down as the dark void remains unchanged. The creepy music intensifies. You look down and hesitate before taking a first step. Your mother yells out from the audience, “Don’t go down there!” But...you go down. With your trusty flashlight in hand, you head down the stairway. Halfway down, your old friend flickers and dies. You’re forced to feel your way through the dark. You push through the cobwebs and spiders, creaking noises, and the obligatory cat jumping and screeching. Where the hell did that cat come from? As you arrive at the bottom of the stairs, there’s a dim light from the tiny window up in the corner. You turn…and out of the shadows...YIKES! There’s the monster your mother tried to warn you about. There’s no escape. If only you’d listened to Mom. In The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille, I’ve shared Lucille’s wisdom to keep you from going into that scary basement defenseless. Men are dumb enough to go into the gloom against all advice. Women are much smarter, and they only go into the basement because it’s part of a romance novel lodged in their imaginations. Their prince is down there, and venturing into the dark holds the fantasy of living happily ever after. When the dead light switch and the creepy music don’t alarm you then perhaps sharing my conversations with Lucille, and my missteps, can keep you from going down those dark stairs alone. If you do go, you may be better equipped to handle what’s in the basement. If you find you are the monster below, maybe we can keep you from dispatching the less-than-perfect person who stumbles down to meet you.

The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille
Clarion Foreword Review
Five Stars (out of Five)
FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS
The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille: The Ultimate Guide to Love Long and Prosper
Five Stars (out of Five)
Bob Mack Peak
Bob Mack Peak, illustrator
CreateSpace
978-1-4895-5340-9

Can’t figure out what your spouse is thinking? Well, what would Lucille say? Men and women will find helpful advice here. From the start of time, men and women have tried to figure one another out. Relationships are complicated. Bob Mack Peak’s “The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille” uses the author’s mother as a compass for relationships. Peak uses personal anecdotes, his mother’s lessons, and the Depression-era generation to explain how to find unconditional love.

Instead of clear-cut rules, Peak offers guidelines to help couples. More than three decades of relationships—including Peak’s own relationship failures and successes, as well as the time line of his parents’ long marriage—are chronicled in this book. Peak’s parents’ meeting at a USO function is described in great detail. When his father leaves to fight in World War II, the reader can imagine the events as if they were on the big screen.

Lucille is ever present in these pages. Each chapter opens with one of her memorable quotations. For example, Peak begins a chapter about first love with Lucille’s guiding tenet that “the only difference between love for your mother and your wife is that you don’t want to sleep with your mother.” These nuggets shed light on Lucille’s sharp sense of humor.

The book is divided into three main sections. The first introduces the premise and asks people to reflect on their first love, past relationships, and current situation. The second offers fifteen lessons for creating strong relationships, from the first date and kiss to understanding that relationships are marathons. In the final section, Peak offers solutions for “crossing the abyss,” accepting one another’s imperfections, and fully prospering with a life partner. Reflection is integral to this book. People may not always listen to sage advice like Lucille’s, but we can all learn from past mistakes. When discussing ex-wives, for example, the author refers to these relationships as experimental flights. He uses the metaphor of Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier on the same date as his (Peak’s) birthday. Yeager had to use test planes before finding success and reaching new heights. Some of these relationships crashed and burned, whereas others offered rebirth.

Peak’s playful cover depicts the lighthearted nature of the book and hints at the theme of helping men find themselves. Many other relationship-focused books are academic in nature and written by psychology or self-help professionals with PhDs. Peak’s book focuses more on his personal dating experiences and the sound advice of his mother. The companion website also offers rich resources, like a calculator where users can rate their men as potential partners. The men-versus-women component of the book might seem slightly dated. Peak writes that men are morons (women are smarter). Gender-specific statements seem confining for people who do not fall cleanly into one category. Readers will need to keep in mind that the book is based on Lucille’s teachings; thus, the guidelines are meant to help people manage conflict, not to present pure fact. These statements are supposed to spark conversation and reflection, so couples can see one another’s point of view.

Both men and women will find helpful advice about how to date, communicate, and build a meaningful relationship. Instead of sweating the small stuff, people can sharpen their perspective on relationships. This is a chance to wake up and prosper. When in doubt, people should ask the important question, “What would Lucille say?”

Lisa Bower, Clarion Review


The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille
CreateSpace Editorial Review
Five Stars (out of Five)
The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is Bob Mack Peak’s well-crafted, uplifting, heart-felt romantic epic. It’s a lighthearted look at the differences between men and women. Peak proves the well-known, open proposition that "Everything my mother told me about women is true... and I can prove it." The book’s flowing narrative offers the reader a delightful journey toward discovering life's truest reward—unconditional love.

The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille finds a parallel and rampart through the life of the author’s parents. They were a part of the so-called Greatest Generation. Raised during the hardships of the Great Depression, Peak’s parents built a terrific life with beloved children, yet they suffered terrible losses later in life. Peak begins his story at his parents’ home in the “Show Me State” of Missouri where they meet at a USO function before his father leaves for World War II. Even as a child, Peak is impacted by his mother Lucille’s advice on girls, women, and how to spot a potentially problematic relationship.

Readers who adore the films Terms of Endearment and The Help, will fall in love with Peak’s book, as the themes from those hit Hollywood epics echo throughout the book.

Peak’s work offers guidelines rather than hard and fast rules to assist women, men and couples to “Love Long and Prosper.” The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is uniquely different from similar books of the relationship and romantic genre written by a plethora of PhD’s and various authors. This is because it draws upon Peak’s personalized experiences supported by the seemingly timeless, sage advice of the author’s mother. In short, the book will help readers achieve a useful perspective on what’s genuine in life and love, as well as what’s realistically obtainable.

Displaying his gift for honestly communicating deeply moving experiences, Peak carefully navigates the ups and downs of his relationships. Peak relates his ex-wives to “experimental flights,” since his birthday coincides with Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in the X-1 test plane on October 14. The author’s “EXs” were not dissimilar to unstable test planes that crashed. Some of his “relationship crashes” left no survivors, while other smashups provided the genesis of a phoenix-like rebirth.

The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is divided into four sections. The first section sets forth the premise of the “Unconditional Abyss.” The second delves into “Fifteen Lessons” that guide the reader through their own relationships and formulates the 85% Man metaphor. Section three explains how to cross the Unconditional Abyss—including dealing with tragedy. Part four offers a moving good-bye to the various characters presented in the book.

Each chapter of the book begins with a pearl of wisdom from Lucille. Her immortal lexicon abounds as she says, "The truth starts with a kiss. It may not be the whole truth, but it's a good starting place,” and "Women are like elephants...the most dangerous animals in the jungle, and they never forget anything.” Her words are unforgettable, as is Lucille, who incidentally was declared dead as a little girl after a bout with scarlet fever, only to resurrect for a second chance at a life of inspiring others. Perhaps best of all, the book references a link to the website www.85PercentMan.com featuring a section where visitors can calculate how their man scores, and discover WWLS (What Would Lucille Say).

In the words of Peak, The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is "analogous to starring in a scary movie. You're at the top of the stairs and the lights don't work. You think there's something down there for you, while your mother's in the audience yelling, ‘Don't go down there.’ Against her advice, you go anyway. At the bottom of the stairs you turn, and it's the monster your mother warned you about. The theme of the book follows Lucille's lessons, and my missteps, to guide the reader so they don't go down into the dark alone.”


Hollywood Book Review
Hollywood Book Review 2014
Five Stars (out of Five)
For Bob Mack Peak, life has been full of lessons about love and relationships. Perhaps the greatest source of guidance in these areas was his mother, Lucille. Beautiful and yet practical, she was part of the Greatest Generation and a military wife; she had a uniquely daring view of life that was filled with a desire for new experiences and yet was fully grounded in family and home. She provided Peak with her own nuggets of wisdom about life and ways to maneuver—or better, to avoid—obstacles that would be encountered along the way. Although Peak's father was a source of strength and wit, his mother, Lucille, would leave him with advice that would guide him through the modern minefield of dating and marriage. A loving family home provided Peak with the necessary basis for a full adult life. Determined to go his own way, he began dating women with earnest, only remembering later his mother's advice for such situations. Plenty of bad relationships and experiences with shallow women gradually produced a change in Peak, one that would begin with his cataloging his mother's words of wisdom and utilizing them in his own life. Using his parents' marriage as a model, he found the qualities necessary for any lasting relationship. It was a practical approach and was based in personal experience and observations; its truth—just as that of his mother's guidance—would be confirmed in his own marriage to a wonderful and supportive woman. The 85% Man and Lessons from Lucille is not only the tale of Peak's own life experiences but also is more importantly a relationship book for the rest of us. Although Peak admits that he has read his share of dating and self-help books, he writes mainly out of his own dating mishaps as well as the lessons learned from his mother. This book avoids much of the dry psychological references found in many books, focusing more on humorous stories and direct advice that can be applied in any relationship, whether one just beginning or decades old.
This is a book that is down-to-earth in perspective, one that views men and women as essentially different and provides guidance for both sexes in dealing with these differences. Obviously this is more of a traditional view of marriage, but it is one that works. As Peak learned from his parents, those marriages from the Greatest Generation were based on this perspective; the two partners accepted their differences while loving each other fully. In the modern age of dating and throw-away relationships, these lessons for love and life are valuable, providing a necessary counterpoint to marriages that are increasingly short and messy. This book fills a certain void in the current market in that it is directed in many ways toward men when most relationship books are written solely for women. The writing of the book will certainly appeal to men with its humor and method of delivery; however, women will also have much to learn from the male perspective of their own behavior and mode of communication. In many ways, it is like reading the words of an older brother or father, one who is willing to share his own wisdom with younger generations. Whether young or old, though, those wishing to improve their love experiences will certainly find Bob Mack Peak's “The 85% Man” a worthwhile read.