Dad Was a Carpenter: A Father, a Son, and the Blueprints for a Meaningful Life (Hardcover)

by Kenny Kemp (Author) "I lied Dad was not really a carpenter..." (more)
Key Phrases: Kenny Kemp, San Diego

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
No, Dad wasn't really a carpenter. Kenny Kemp's father was a pharmacist who liked to make things in his garage, a man who always saw something new and useful in things old and worn. "To him, a piece of plywood wasn't just lumber: it was a travel box, a bunk bed, a train set platform, or a dresser," explains Kemp. Soon after his father died, Kemp traveled to San Diego to face the grim task of sorting through his dad's belongings. In the garage, the flashbacks begin: the time when Dad helped him build a go-cart out of a broom and a washing-machine part, or the time Dad made an aluminum-frame backpack for the author's first scouting trip. The memories build upon each other, crafting a father-son relationship that has its share of hard knocks, but that's ultimately sealed with the lasting glue of loyalty. We see how fathering a child is a spiritual act, one that requires attention, ingenuity, and ongoing patience. And we see how a handyman father helps a young boy become a good man--a man who ultimately witnesses the painful death of his father from Lou Gehrig's disease. In the end, Kenny Kemp's Dad Was a Carpenter is like his father's handiwork: simple, lasting, and filled with an affirmation of fatherly love. --Gail Hudson

From Library Journal
Men, it is said, love to take things apart; the tricky part is putting them back together again. In both of these memoirs, the authors successfully disassemble and rebuild their relationships with their fathers. Kemp's memoir is a brief but beautiful love letter to his deceased pops. Winner of the 1999 Writer's Digest National Self-Published Book contest's Grand Prize, this work recalls the author's meaningful connections (e.g., "I had the best go-cart in the world and...[he] built it for me") and chronicles parts of his dad's life. Writing in a frankly inspirational style, Kemp, a Salt Lake City-based attorney, focuses on what his father taught him about life's big lessons. Marchese, a freelance writer, takes a more workman-like approach. He deconstructs the complex relationship that he shares with his former construction-worker father and presents it as clearly as a blueprint. Their fizzled relationship is rekindled when the two renovate a house in Narrowsburg, NY. It helps that Dad has a lifetime's experience, because Marchese doesn't even know which end of a pry-bar to use. An epiphany near the end of Marchese's book speaks to everyone: "Like all sons, I am what I am both because of [my father] and despite him."Although there is much accumulated wisdom in both books, libraries might prefer Marchese's literate and forthright account, although Kemp's more idealized account will work well where inspirational titles for men are needed. Libraries might also consider Ted Solotaroff's Truth Comes in Blows (LJ 11/1/98) and Hugh Howard's House-Dreams (LJ 5/15/01). Appropriate for Father's Day gifts and for public libraries. Douglas C. Lord, Hartford P.L., CT
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: HarperSanFrancisco; Blueprints for Meaningful Life edition (April 24, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062517635
• ISBN-13: 978-0062517630
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #972,752 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read - you can't read this book just once OR twice!, June 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Dad Was a Carpenter: Blueprints for a Meaningful Life (Hardcover)

Dad was a Carpenter was written in a simple yet imaginative style. It is such an easy and pleasant reading experience. Kemp paints a picture of his father that is real-life. There is nothing flashy - but there is substance to this man. As I read, I could see the parallels between their relationship and that of myself and my own father. The world is full of "non-hero" type fathers who teach their children and just survive life and yet make it so full of memories for their families. When you have finished the book, you feel as if you personally know O.C. Kemp (the father) and have traveled through life with the Kemp family and have become a part of their family. As you read of the experiences in each chapter - you find yourself comparing your life's experiences with that of the author and his father and saying to yourself - "Hey, that's me and my Dad." Reading this book will make you want to share it with everyone. My wife and I have already decided what to give everyone for Christmas this year - "Dad was Carpenter."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very highly recommended, February 3, 2001

By	C. Penn "WordWeaving" (Greenville, SC) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Dad Was a Carpenter: Blueprints for a Meaningful Life (Hardcover)

Writer and filmmaker Kenny Kemp won the Grand Prize in the prestigious Writer's Digest National Self-Published Book Awards for his memoir DAD WAS A CARPENTER: BLUEPRINTS FOR A MEANINGFUL LIFE, beating thousands of competing entries. The judges ruled well, for this beautifully written story of father, a son, and the meaning of life is must read.

Kemp begins his memoir with the words, "I lied--Dad was not really a carpenter. He didn't work in the trades at all. He was a pharmacist--an ordinary man with poor eyesight, gapped teeth, and no hearing in one ear..." Yet Kemp doesn't lie at all. For concealed beneath the ordinary veneer is an extraordinary father whose talented hands and imagination could see possibilities in the rejected, the mundane, and the discarded. Out of cast-off patent-room lamps, he created a chandelier. From equally simple materials, he created a go-cart. Out of an accident, he inspired a son to pay for damages and make the repairs himself. And the ability to see beyond the broken, the cracked and faded inspired a son's imagination with words and with film.

DAD WAS A CARPENTER: BLUEPRINTS FOR A MEANINGFUL LIFE will only take an hour or two to read, but the subtle life lessons shared within will remain with the reader for a lifetime. The son who learned the value of straightening nails has shared a profound philosophical view of life in the telling of his story. Indeed, the simple carpenter that lay beneath the skin of pharmacist will touch the heart of any that reads DAD WAS A CARPENTER: BLUEPRINTS FOR A MEANINGFUL LIFE. I very highly recommend it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for gifts, November 4, 2001

By	Sammie Justesen "Just Sam" (Sandpoint, ID) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have tears running down my face after reading the end, but this book also made me laugh. I'll be ordering an extra copy for my son-in-law as he and my daughter await the birth of their first child. This moving story would make a perfect Christmas or Father's Day gift.