Father’s Day Books For The Dads In Your Life

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Forget the tie. Father’s Day is a good opportunity to give the special man in your life a good book. We have put together a collection of books that fit a variety of categories and interests. Hopefully, one or two will sound like a good fit for your dad – or for yourself.

Father’s Day Books

Father’s Day books – My Father, The Captain by Jean-Michel Cousteau with Daniel Paisner (2010)

Environmentalist and film producer Jean-Michel Cousteau not only grew up learning about his famous father’s work, but he has spent most of adult life documenting his father’s work. It is a fresh and intimate portrait of the man who changed the way we look at the sea.

“The moment we understand and accept the way other people live–other species, even–is the moment we can find a satisfactory solution to whatever problem we are confronting,” the author writes. “My father understood this concept especially well. It was among his many gifts to be able to step outside himself and see a situation from another point of view. He saw the world as a sailor, as a businessman, as a moviegoer, as a fish.”

Father’s Day books – In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods by Matt Bell (2014)

Did your Dad read you fairy tales when you were little? Here’s a modern version. Matt Bell explores parenthood and marriage and the problems those relationships face when things don’t go as we planned. This unusual book is almost mythical in its nature as it follows the lives of an unnamed couple who plan to live a simple life along a distant lakeshore. Along the way, we contemplate what it means to be a husband and a father.

Father’s Day books – The Son by Philipp Meyer (2013)

Here’s a more traditional novel that captures the American West and all its flavor yet manages to stay fresh and cliché-free. We follow the lives of several generations of a Texas family from the 1800s through the 20th century. It’s the sweeping kind of saga that your Dad will love to read and savor this summer.

Father’s Day books – Tenth of December by George Saunders (2014)

If your dad likes to read short stories, here is a fine collection by a master storyteller. George Saunders takes on life’s mysteries in this group of tightly-written and unpredictable stories.

Father’s Day books – The Fall of Arthur by J.R.R. Tolkien (2014)

Was it your father who turned you on to Tolkien? Return the favor by giving him this epic poem that was first published last year. Sadly, Tolkien never completed this tribute to King Arthur, but his fans will recognize the writer’s beautiful and haunting way with words.

Father’s Day books – On These Courts by Wayne B. Drash (2014)

What’s a Father’s Day book list without a sports book? If your dad enjoys films like Friday Night Lights or The Blind Side, he will like this account of Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway and the Memphis middle school team he coached all the way to the state championship. This a real-life feel-good story at its best.

Happy Father’s Day!

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