Sons on Fathers: A Book of Men's Writing [Hardcover]

Ralph Keyes (Author, Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1992

Ralph Keyes spent years collecting sons' writing about their fathers. In Sons on Fathers he's gathered the very best. Authors include Lewis Grizzard, Patrick Hemingway, John Cheever, Pete Hamill, Lewis Thomas, Louie Anderson, Jimmy Carter, and dozens more. The book is organized to illustrate the evolution of son-father feelings: from adoring childhood through rebellious adolescence to edgy adulthood and the years of reflection following a father's death. Emotions run the gamut from love, respect and pride to enmity, jealousy, and anger. Some men depict a heroic struggle to square things with their fathers while they are still alive. Others try to come to terms with memories of their fathers once they're gone. Fathers and sons everywhere will recognize their own experiences and feelings in this book. Sons on Fathers is an important, intimate look at the relationship between men and their dads.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Ralph Keyes, in his poignant introduction, details his own dealings with his dad, and how, over the years, he collected various writings on their fathers; the result is this book. ... Keyes has done all men a service with Sons on Fathers. --Bookpage

A wonderful book that would make any day in the year a tribute to Dad. Keyes's selections of prose and poetry, memoirs and fiction began as a labor of love motivated by his feeling about his father but continued because he came to realize that the deep feelings and pent-up emotions of the writers contributed to a special quality in the writing itself. --San Diego Magazine

[A] moving collection of essays, short stories and poetry by 75 men. ... Tears of lost opportunities run through this collection, because the sons' words were often written after the fathers died. --Gannett News Service

About the Author

Ralph Keyes is the author of fourteen books. His bestseller Is There Life After High School? was made into a Broadway musical that is still produced in this country and abroad. Chancing It was a New York Times Notable Book. Timelock was selected by the Book-of-the-Month Club and excerpted in Reader s Digest. John Jakes called The Courage to Write one of the two or three best books on writing I ve ever read. Keyes has appeared on Oprah Winfrey, The Today Show, The Tonight Show, ABC World News Tonight, and twice on 20/20. On National Public Radio he s been interviewed by Susan Stamberg, Robert Siegel, Noah Adams, Neal Conan, and Terry Gross (on Fresh Air, All Things Considered, and Talk of the Nation). Keyes was one of Bob Edwards's first guests on The Bob Edwards Show on XM Radio. People Magazine has featured him twice. His own articles have been published by magazines such as Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Self, GQ, Newsweek, Parade, Sports Illustrated, Car and Driver, Harper s, and Human Behavior. An article he co-authored won the McKinsey Award for Best Article of the Year in the Harvard Business Review. Keyes is listed in Contemporary Authors, Who s Who in America, and Who s Who in the World.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 315 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (July 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060168676
• ISBN-13: 978-0060168674
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,730,470 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)