Brad Land

American memoirist whose debut Goat: A Memoir (2004) recounts his brutal carjacking and assault, his subsequent PTSD, and his decision to pledge a fraternity at Clemson University — where the hazing he endured echoed the violence of his attack. The book was adapted into a 2016 film starring Ben Schnetzer and Nick Jonas and became a key text in discussions of masculinity, trauma, and American fraternity culture.

Past sales0

PeriodContemporary

NationalityAmerican

1. Biography

A short life of the author

Brad Land is an American writer whose memoir Goat (2004, Random House) tells two stories of violence: first, a random carjacking and beating that left him physically and psychologically shattered, and second, the hazing rituals of a college fraternity that he pledged in an attempt to reclaim his sense of masculinity and belonging. The parallel between the two forms of violence — criminal assault and institutionalised male brutality — gives the book its disturbing power.

Goat was adapted into a 2016 film directed by Andrew Neel, starring Ben Schnetzer and Nick Jonas, and the book has been widely assigned in college courses on masculinity, trauma, and American culture.

Land has also published a second memoir, Pilgrimage of Desire (2009), about his ongoing recovery and his relationship with his brother.

Collecting Land

Goat (2004, Random House) first editions bring $20–$50. The film adaptation increased visibility. Land has not published extensively beyond this memoir, making it his sole significant collectible.