What Gentlemen Do

An uplifting and outrageously funny story of a young man on the brink, wrestling with rejection and consequence, who finds wisdom in unlikely places.

‘Exuberant, frequently hilarious, and deadly serious about saying the things we won't admit to ourselves. I absolutely loved it.’ Jock Serong

Things haven't been going well for Waylon Gans. His hometown of Walleye is known to be a shithole, he's barely employed, and the sublime Derby Froese wants to keep him in the friendzone. And that was before he fell in with a right-wing influencer, accidentally started a riot, and people on the internet began to hate him. Now Derby can't even look at him, his best friend Solomon feels betrayed, and somehow his life has got even worse.

With nothing to lose, he enrols in an ancient philosophy class and discovers Stoicism. What would Marcus Aurelius do? he asks himself. And: What is my path of virtue? And also: How can I get Derby to be impressed with me?

And while the answers might not change everything, they could make a whole lot of things better in Walleye. Not just for Waylon, but for everyone around him.

What Gentlemen Do is a great-hearted jewel of a book: wise, optimistic, occasionally heartbreaking and frequently laugh-out-loud funny.

'Funny, furious, and quietly devastating...Todd Babiak has written one of the most hopeful things I've read about our relationship to cities and place in years.' Richard Florida, author of The New Urban Crisis

'Few writers can bring together humour, heart, and hope more thoughtfully and powerfully than Todd Babiak, even in a story set against a very bleak but all too real societal landscape. Brilliantly written, this novel tears you down and then lifts you up. Masterful.' Terry Fallis, two-time winner of the Leacock Medal for Humour