FATHERING DAUGHTERS C [Hardcover]

DeWitt Henry (Editor), James Alan McPherson (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 17, 1998

"This is a gem of a book--diverse, rich and full of voices pure in their honesty. Henry and McPherson have assembled some of the country's most gifted writers to reflect on as precious subject, one that's been seldom examined and which takes us far beyond much of today's fashionable chat about 'he' and 'she.'"--Scott Turow, author of The Laws of Our Fathers.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Literally hundreds of books cast light on the mother-daughter bond, but the relationship between a girl and her other parent remains stubbornly hidden in shadow. The strikingly lucent essays in Fathering Daughters do their best to repair that imbalance. There's Rodger Kamentz, who prefers speaking English straight up rather than babbling baby talk at his infant Anya--"Why offer her ears a blurry target?"--and Rick Bass, who worries about tweaking his daughters' political consciousness too hard. You want your daughters to loathe injustice, he says, but do you want them to burn as erratically and out-of-control as you do--with that much bitterness? Psychiatrist Samuel Shem observes American gender differences with some alarm as his 3-year-old daughter anxiously considers what to wear before a play date where the boy will snub her attempts to connect. Darker tales surface from Gary Soto, drowning in depression, and William Petersen, on a vacation with a daughter dying of leukemia. A few essays are irritatingly narcissistic, but the best showcase some tremendous writers capturing murmurs that swell to a roar as they echo back from our own lives. --Francesca Coltrera

From Publishers Weekly

Lily, Annie, Katie Chun, Anya, Mary Katherine, Lowry, Madison, Linnet, Ruth, Aviva, Francesca, Andrea, Mariko, RachelAthese are among the daughters whose stories their fathers chronicle here. All the pieces commissioned for this book by Henry, founding editor of Ploughshares, and McPherson (Crabcakes) are literate and absorbing; several have appeared elsewhere. In the most wrenching selection, Mark Pendergrast, author of For God, Country and Coca-Cola, relates the estrangement of his two daughters, who broke off contact with him after supposedly retrieving "memories" of his sexual abuse. In one of the most enlightening accounts, Samuel Shem, a psychiatrist, who with his wife traveled to China to adopt their daughter, details the gender differentiation to which boys and girls in all cultures are subject from the earliest age. Fred Viebahn (The Stain) talks about raising a biracial child with his wife, the poet Rita Dove. And in the most poignant account, William Petersen, a fishmonger and writer, relates a trip to Mexico with his daughter, who is gravely weakened by leukemia. This is a collection for those interested in bedrock human relations.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Beacon Press; First Edition edition (June 17, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807062189
• ISBN-13: 978-0807062180
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,865,958 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born 6/​30/​41 in Wayne, PA. Radnor High School, 1959; A.B. Amherst College, 1963; M.A. in English, Harvard Univ., 1965; Ph.D. English, Harvard Univ., 1971; completed requirements for M.F.A. University of Iowa, 1968 (did not take the degree). Married Constance Sherbill 1973; two children Ruth Kathryn Henry born 1977; David Jung Min Henry born 1985. Grand daughter Eva Luz Henry born 2003. Sister Judy Friedericy; brothers Charles (deceased 1999) and John T. Henry (deceased 2004). Founding editor of Ploughshares literary magazine, and active editor and director 1971-1995. Interim Director of Ploughshares 6/​2007-10/​2008. Professor, Writing, Literature, and Publishing, Emerson College, 2006 to present; Associate Professor 1989 to 2006: hired as Assistant Professor 1983; Acting Chairperson 1987-8; Chairperson 1989-93.

For more details see www.dewitthenry.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Forget the cover- listen to the insight, March 22, 2000

By 

zip (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: FATHERING DAUGHTERS C (Hardcover)

For all of you who have enjoyed works by authors such as James Alan McPherson, you will not be dissapointed by this one! The essays afforded in this collection were well arranged and complimentary, dealing with such diversities as retardation, sexual abuse, coming of age, child innocence...bottom line: a father's experience in love. The prolific writers who contributed to this book make the reading enjoyable at least as short fiction...add the truth and emotion of memoir and they become gems. You may not like each of the essays, but the collection overshadows any single dislike.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For moms and dads and kids, alike, June 12, 2000

By 

clueless (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fathering Daughters: Reflections by Men (Paperback)

I actually gave this book to my mother who enjoyed it as much as I did. We found it a valuable illustration of relationships to be learned from and entertained by...

3 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars cover depicts child in sexual manner. shameful., January 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: FATHERING DAUGHTERS C (Hardcover)

Why does the cover depict a child so sexually. It is disgusting and sad that they could not convey a child and her innocence on the cover. Sexualizing daughters on their cover contributes to the sick things being done to innocent children. Was it done to sell more?