A Selection of Books about Fathers
With Father’s Day coming up and our recent selection of books about motherhood, we decided to keep the theme going by choosing some of the most stark, moving and troubling depictions of the relationship between fathers and their children that we’ve come across on the page. There are many thousands of books that could fit those criteria, but these are just a few of our favourites that you should get started on.
John Steinbeck - East of Eden, 1952
Set in the farmland of California in the early twentieth century, Steinbeck’s magnum opus is brilliant in its scope and scale. Though it primarily follows the fortunes and intertwined destinies of two families, one of the most significant elements of the book is fatherhood. A classic and a retelling of the Cain and Abel parable, this is a must for every bibliophile.
Cormac McCarthy - The Road, 2006
Detailing the grueling post-apocalyptic journey of a father and his young son across a landscape where nearly all life has been destroyed, Cormac McCarthy’s book won the Pulitzer as well as several other major awards. Told in a spare, psychological manner, the book is harrowing, heartbreaking and apparently inspired in part by McCarthy’s own conversations with his son.
Jhumpa Lahiri - The Namesake, 2003
Brought up as an Indian in suburban America, Gogol Ganguli soon finds himself itching to cast off his awkward name, just as he longs to leave behind the inherited values of his Bengali parents. Spanning three decades and crossing continents, Jhumpa Lahiri’s much-anticipated first novel is a humane triumph that explores, amongst other things, how immigration and parenthood weave together. Elegant, subtle and moving, it’s a modern classic.
Marilynne Robinson - Home, 2008
A moving book about siblings returning home to care for their dying father, Robinson’s Home is about love, death, faith and more. Alternating between Jack, an alcoholic and a rebel, and Glory, his sister, it charts their relationship with their traditionalist father and the fragile, improbable ways that even the most flawed of homes contain hope.
Max Porter - Grief is The Thing With Feathers, 2015
A brilliant debut by a notable writer, Max Porter’s novella is about death and grief, telling the tale of the father of two young boys who is trying to come to terms with the death of his wife while writing a book about Ted Hughes. Told in an experimental blend of dialogue, prose and poetry, it’s a truly enchanting work that brings to life the consolations of love and art while dealing with loss.
Ta-Nehisi Coates - Between the World and Me, 2015
A seminal work of nonfiction that ‘sealed Coates’ place in the literary canon’, Between the World and Me is a letter from a father to his son, recounting his own experiences and confronting the question of race with acuity and ingenuity, holding up a mirror to American history. It became an instant classic and has won numerous accolades, and deservedly so.
Hisham Matar - The Return, 2016
Hisham Matar was nineteen when his father was kidnapped and imprisoned in Libya. He would never see him again. Twenty-two years later, the fall of Gaddafi meant he finally returned to his homeland. In this moving memoir, Matar takes us on an illuminating journey, both physical and psychological, to find his father and rediscover his country. An exquisite meditation on history, politics, love and family, it’s an absolutely stunning book.
Check out some of these titles and explore many more on the Hammock Literary Map : our interactive, searchable database of award-winning authors from the last two centuries.