Dadditude: How a Real Man Became a Real Dad [Hardcover]

Philip Lerman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 8, 2007

A fresh take on the foibles, pratfalls, and occasional successes of fatherhood, Dadditude is a rollicking new twist on the “daddy book”: Lerman, an older dad, spins a yarn about his trek from producing one of the longest-running network television shows ever to tackling one of the longest-running jobs known to man: full-time parenthood. Going in, Lerman believes that moms are like God: Most of their important work is done in the first week, so, after that, they can rest on their laurels. Dads, on the other hand, he figures, are the Avis rent-a-cars of parenthood, always trying harder. But surprise: Even his many years of highly structured management experience have left him unprepared for the chaos that awaits. Ultimately, Lerman learns that good parenting isn’t about your gender and that controlling your child is, paradoxically, a matter of learning to let go. By turns poignant and hilarious, Dadditude shows that in the process of almost losing your mind, you can find your heart.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The strength of print and television reporter Lerman's funny and insightful look at full-time parenthood has almost nothing to do with being a "real" man and everything to do with being an older dad. At 44, Lerman hits his self-imposed age deadline for fatherhood and being able to attend a child's marriage "without the aid of a portable oxygen tent." His account of what older parents-to-be go through to get pregnant will be immediately familiar to any couple who has experienced what Lerman correctly calls "the promising, terrifying, and enormously embarrassing world of Baby Science"—including Clomid fertility treatments, sperm tests and in vitro fertilization—and it adds a sweet and thoughtful edge to the many adventures over four years after his son, Max, is born. While Lerman's Dave Barry–style humor doesn't always work, he is far more successful—and funny—recounting his struggles with lack of sleep, changing diapers and "full-fledged neurosis" about forgetting Max somewhere. More important, he captures the many ways fathers work hard at establishing their "own special relationship" with babies and toddlers, concluding with a beautiful definition of "Dadditude" as "being in the moment" and experiencing the "closeness beyond words and before words" that can be felt between parent and child. (June)
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Review

"Lerman's amusing take... will give many other parents, of any age, a whole series of been-there moments." -- Infodad.com, 6/21/07

"Philip Lerman takes another comical-yet-insightful look at...what it's like to become a dad later in life." -- Body + Soul, June 2007

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Press (May 8, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738211001
• ISBN-13: 978-0738211008
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,166,377 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Great read for New Dads and New Moms, December 30, 2007

By 

Claudine Wolk "Author, Blogger, Mom" (Bucks County, PA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dadditude: How a Real Man Became a Real Dad (Hardcover)

Dadditude is a memoir from someone new moms don't hear a lot from these days - A Dad. Phil Lerman, accomplished writer and producer, becomes stay-at-home Dad and lives to tell the tale. As he is an "older" stay-at-home dad he chronicles for the reader his foray into fertilization in order to become a Dad (hysterical) and his reflection on his son's life from birth to four years old. (my favorite parts are the honesty with which Lerman describes all the "mistakes" he is making, particularly regarding the "sleeping in issue" - all parents can relate!) He blends his experience with words of wisdom that he has procured along the way. The result is an easy-to-read look into this Dad's heart and a reminder to New Dads and Moms that it's OK to give up some control and still be a real Man (and woman), a lesson any new Dad or new Mom can use.

It Gets Easier!: And Other Lies We Tell New Mothers

4.0 out of 5 stars Losing Control, October 28, 2007

By 

North Idaho Dad "chalkhorse" - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Dadditude: How a Real Man Became a Real Dad (Hardcover)

I just finished reading Dadditude, a hilarious new book about fatherhood from author Philip Lerman, In it, he chronicles his journey from fertility treatments through the first four years of his son's life.

Along the way, he adopts a new attitude, or Dadditude as he calls it, that there's only so much you can control in your child's life, and all the rest you just have to learn to accept. Finding that middle ground, between control and acceptance, is the key to being a happy dad.

Another lesson that Lerman conveys is that fatherhood shouldn't be so needlessly complicated. Dads don't always know how to be simple and straightforward. It's in our DNA. We also need to learn to laugh at ourselves a little more, and you'll find plenty of "Me too" moments in this book.

Dadditude gets a huge recommendation from me. It's a joy to find both humor and warmth combined so skillfully in a parenting book.