The Heart of a Father: How You Can Become a Dad of Destiny [Paperback]

Ken Canfield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2006

From our fathers we learn so many things about character, integrity, honesty, and life itself. From the founder and president of the National Center for Fathering comes this stirring message for fathers and sons alike.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

CONNECTING WITH YOUR CHILD’S HEART IS ONE OF THE MOST SATISFYING EXPERIENCES IN LIFE.

 

Every father has a hidden desire for his children--to see them surpass him. How can this come about? Ken Canfield gives a three-part blueprint: First, a dad should examine his own heart. Next, he should take steps to improve the way he connects with his children. Then he should take a longer range view and plan specifically for a lifetime of involved fathering.

 

Based on years of careful research involving thousands of fathers, this book is a solid reference tool for fathers. Canfield’s three-part blueprint addresses:

 

• A father’s past. A father should resolve his relationship with his own father in order to effectively build a relationship with his children.
• How to make a dad’s house a home. Canfield explains how to build the four “walls” or dimensions, of fathering:

--involvement

--consistency

--awareness

--nurturance

• A plan for the future. From being a new father to being a grandfather, dads face challenges at each stage of their life. With the long-range perspective this book provides, fathers can anticipate and prepare for the changing situations they’ll face.

 

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE YOUR POWER AS A FATHER. YOU UNDOUBTEDLY WILL INFLUENCE AND SHAPE FUTURE GENERATIONS.

 

 

“The nation’s foremost fathering expert has written the definitive book on being a dad for the next decade. The Heart of a Father is like putting a turbo charger on your fathering engine—your mileage and enjoyment are guaranteed to improve.” Gary Smalley, President and founder of Smalley Relationship Center

About the Author

KEN CANFIELD is a research scholar specializing in the area of fathering and the history of the family. He is founder and president of the National Center for Fathering, based in Manhattan, Kansasthe only national organization focused solely on equipping men to be the involved fathers their children need. Canfield earned his B.A. degree in philosophy from Friends University (Wichita, KS), an M.S. from Regent College (Vancouver, B.C.), and holds a Ph.D. in education from Kansas State University (Manhattan, KS). His dissertation reported on his innovative research on the life course of fathers. He has also written for a number of magazines both academic and popular. Ken and his wife, Dee, reside in Kansas City. They have been married for 30 years and have 5 children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Northfield Publishing (April 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1881273466
• ISBN-13: 978-1881273462
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,411,137 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Ken R. Canfield is a research scholar specializing in the area of fatherhood and the history of the family. He is founder and president of the Kansas City-based National Center for Fathering--a non-profit education and research center dedicated to inspiring and equipping men to be responsible fathers.

His work has been recognized in a variety of ways: He is a consultant to state and community officials on ways to engage and equip fathers in local programming; he served as one of the founding members of former Vice President Al Gore's private sector "Father to Father" Initiative; and he was awarded the 1993 Father of the Year by the National Congress for Men and Children.

Ken is the author of "The Heart of a Father" (Northfield Publishing, Chicago, 1996), as well as three other books, including the award-winning "7 Secrets of Effective Fathers" (Tyndale, 1992). Canfield has been interviewed as an authority on fathering skills and research, as well as on the negative consequences of father absence. He has appeared on "Oprah," NBC's "The Today Show," ABC's "World News Tonight," "Focus on the Family," and numerous other programs.

Besides publishing the quarterly "Today's Father" magazine and doing a short weekday "Today's Father" radio commentary (heard on some 500 stations nationwide), Canfield has written for a number of magazines, both academic and popular: "Psychological Reports," "Educational and Psychological Measurements," "The World & I," "Parents," "Today's Better Life," "New Man," and "Living With Children."

Canfield's work is rooted in his knowledge of the historical literature on fathering and current social science research data. The Center maintains one of the largest ongoing databases on fathering in the nation, including more than 10,000 responses from men to the 138-question Personal Fathering Profile Canfield developed in conjunction with a number of scholars. The profile has been termed by authorities in the field as the most comprehensive, scientifically sound tool available for a man to inventory his strengths and opportunities as a father. Canfield has led other research as well, including three national random sample polls on fathering and an ongoing National Survey of Men covering a wide variety of men's life issues.

Canfield earned his B.A. degree in philosophy from Friends University (Wichita, Kansas). He has an M.C.S. degree in historical theology from Regent College (Vancouver, British Columbia) and a Ph.D. in education from Kansas State University (Manhattan, Kansas). His dissertation reported on his innovative research on the life course of fathers.

Ken and his wife, Dee, reside in Kansas City. They have been married for 25 years and have 5 children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars THE HEART OF A FATHER by Ken Canfield, April 12, 2010

By 

thepaxdomini "The Book Review" (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart of a Father: How You Can Become a Dad of Destiny (Paperback)

The Heart of a Father: How You Can Become a Dad of Destiny is a 1996 book on fathering by Ken Canfield, founder of the National Center for Fathering. Based on the research that organization has collected, Canfield offers a three-part "blueprint" for good fathering.

First, Canfield says, every father should resolve his relationship with his own father so that he can effectively build relationships with his children. Second, a father must be involved, consistent, aware, and nurturing. Third, Canfield offers perspective on each stage of fathering, from having an infant to becoming a grandparent.

For what Canfield has to say, this is a long book (288 pages). Part of the problem is that Canfield loves to belabor his points. He does a ton of recapping, whether from chapter to chapter or paragraph to paragraph. It doesn't help that the content within a number of the early chapters doesn't feel well-organized.

When it comes to problem-solving, Canfield is always frustratingly general, as he tends to drop out of his anecdotes at key moments. So we never get to hear how this fathering expert disciplined his children in any specific situations, and he often presents challenging problems without offering solutions of any kind.

Canfield is more specific with the long-term approach a father should take. Yet his list of mandates feels inhumanly rigid - no one could possibly do all of it and still keep any ambitions of his own. It gives the book a feel of, "Kids are great, but you've got to abandon all your hopes and dreams to raise them right." He also advocates effusively praising your children on a level that feels disingenuous.

Canfield is right on the basics: listen to your children, love them unconditionally, be involved in their lives, build them up, and so forth. No one's disputing that. But this book isn't the best way to get these points across.