Books for Father’s Day
Father’s Day is coming up on Sunday, June 20!
June 14, 2021
Father’s Day is coming up on Sunday, June 20! We’ve gathered together a HUGE list of books celebrating dads! ?
Included in this list: fiction, non-fiction and humor, biography and memoir.
Fiction
The Daddy Diaries
Joshua Braff
Jay and Jackie uproot their family from San Francisco after Jackie loses her job but finds a lucrative new one in St. Petersburg, Florida. Jay, a one-time copywriter and aspiring author, now plays househusband, caring for his troubled 13-year-old son and precocious daughter as they adjust to their new life. As his children begin to assert their independence, Jay realizes that the challenges of child rearing are only going to grow more difficult in the teen years. Through a series of misadventures and run-ins with his narcissistic older brother, his lunatic childhood friend, and his increasingly estranged but beloved son, Jay learns that he must tap his own vulnerabilities if he is to be the rock of stability his family so desperately needs.
Daddy’s Girls
Danielle Steel
Inheriting a California ranch upon their single father’s sudden death, three sisters evaluate their very different childhoods while uncovering paradigm-shifting secrets about their father’s identity that strengthen their bond with each other.
Father’s Day
Simon Van Booy
Weaves together the story of Harvey’s childhood with her Uncle Jason, a disabled felon who took her in after her parents died, and as a young woman in Paris as she awaits his arrival for a Father’s Day visit.
Father’s Day Murder
Leslie Meier
Leaving Tinker’s Cove to attend a conference in Boston, Lucy Stone’s thoughts are focused on being away from her family on Father’s Day, but the murder of newspaper magnate Luther Read turns her thoughts to Luther’s children as possible suspects.
Last Night in Twisted River
John Irving
In a story spanning five decades, a twelve-year-old boy in New Hampshire mistakes the constable’s girlfriend for a bear, leading to an unfortunate accident that forces the boy and his father to become fugitives pursued by the constable.
One Last Thing Before I Go
Jonathan Tropper
Struggling with his ex-wife’s imminent marriage to a nice guy and his Princeton-bound daughter’s unplanned pregnancy, a bewildered Drew Silver tackles difficult family dynamics and refuses to undergo a life-saving operation.
Raising the Dad
Tom Matthews
Navigating the challenges of a stale marriage, a hostile teen daughter, his washed-up heavy-metal singer brother’s recent prison release and his mother’s progressive dementia, an overwhelmed family man stumbles on an incredible secret that changes his relationships in dramatic and profound ways.
The Road
Cormac McCarthy
In a novel set in an indefinite, futuristic, post-apocalyptic world, a father and his young son make their way through the ruins of a devastated American landscape, struggling to survive and preserve the last remnants of their own humanity.
Tinkers
Paul Harding
On his deathbed, surrounded by his family, George Washington Crosby’s thoughts drift back to his childhood and the father who abandoned him when he was twelve.
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley
Hannah Tinti
A once-professional killer protects his daughter from the legacy of his criminal past, an effort that is challenged by his daughter’s struggles with the death of her mother and the reckoning of old enemies
Non-Fiction And Humor
All Pro Dad
Seven Essentials to Be a Hero to Your Kids
Mark Merrill
All Pro Dad lays out a game plan built on seven essential fathering truths and ultra-practical insights for the questions every dad needs answered. Like football, fatherhood is about winning. But it’s more than just scoring points. It’s about winning the hearts and minds of your children and leaving a rich legacy of love for future generations.
The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell
Tales of a 6′ 4″, African American, Heterosexual, Cisgender, Left-Leaning, Asthmatic, Black and Proud Blerd, Mama’s Boy, Dad, and Stand-Up Comedian
W. Kamau Bell
A memoir and manifesto by the comedian, podcast host, and star of “United Shades of America” shares progressive views on issues ranging from race relations and law enforcement to right-wing politics and parenthood.
Benchwarmer
A Sports-Obsessed Memoir of Fatherhood
Josh Wilker
A sportswriter humorously compares his experiences as a first time father to famous sports collapses, simultaneously creating an A-to-Z reference of sports failures and a guide to newly-minted fatherhood.
Chicken Soup for the Father’s Soul
Stories to Open the Hearts and Rekindle the Spirits of Fathers
Jack Canfield
Presents a collection of stories, anecdotes, reminiscences, and observations about the triumphs and trials of fatherhood.
Dad is Fat
Jim Gaffigan
The popular comedian and actor shares his misadventures as an unlikely father of five, presenting full-length accounts of the experiences referenced in his popular tweets, from his formative years in a large Irish-Catholic family, to his middle-of-the-night diaper-changing foibles, to his struggles to lull tyrannical tots to sleep.
Does This Baby Make Me Look Straight?
Confessions of a Gay Dad
Dan Bucatinsky
The co-star of Web Therapy recounts many of the uproarious parenting adventures he has shared with his partner, discussing such topics as the loss of his own father, potty-training antics and the ways in which becoming a parent has impacted every aspect of his life.
Fatherhood
Rising to the Ultimate Challenge
Etan Thomas
An NBA player for the Atlanta Hawks who serves as an advocate for President Obama’s Fatherhood Initiative draws upon other luminaries from the worlds of sports, performing arts, politics and faith leaders to discuss the importance of being a father.
Father’s Day
Matthew Zapruder
The poems in Matthew Zapruder’s fifth collection ask, how can one be a good father, partner, and citizen in the early twenty-first century?
The Geek Dad Book for Aspiring Mad Scientists
The Coolest Experiments and Projects for Science Fairs and Family Fun
Ken Denmead
Provides a collection of ideas for science fair projects and family activities, including making topsoil, understanding calories, and building a MacGyver radio.
Good Talk, Dad
The Birds and the Bees… and Other Conversations We Forgot to Have
Bill Geist, Willie Geist
The popular father and son television hosts exchange entertaining and humorous banter about their lives, touching upon topics like music, sports, summer camp and driving lessons and discuss the parenting legacy they will leave their families.
Handy Dad
25 Awesome Projects for Dads and Kids
Todd Davis
In this super fun book, Todd Davis, star of HGTV’s “Design Star”, offers up 25 awesome projects for dads to build with their kids. Skate ramps, zip lines, go-carts, and more!
Lamentations of the Father
Ian Frazier
A companion to previous humor collections including Dating Your Mom and Coyote v. Acme contains thirty-three works written during the past thirteen years, in a volume by the Thurber Prize-winning author of Great Plains.
Maker Dad
Lunch Box Guitars, Antigravity Jars, and 22 Other Incredibly Cool Father-Daughter Diy Projects
Mark Frauenfelder
Presents crafts and gadgets that fathers can build with their daughters, from an ice cream sandwich necklace to an arcade-style video game.
Pops
Fatherhood in Pieces
Michael Chabon
Essays inspired by Chabon’s interactions with his four children and his own father illuminate the meaning, magic, and mysteries of fatherhood.
Raising Men
Lessons Navy Seals Learned From Their Training and Taught to Their Sons
Eric Davis
Draws on the stories and lessons from former U.S. Navy SEALs on fatherhood, discussing how to use the spirit of adventure to forge connections and raise strong, moral gentlemen.
Sh*T My Dad Says
Justin Halpern
Tuesdays with Morrie meets F My Life in this hilarious coming-of-age book about a son’s relationship with his foul-mouthed father by the 29-year-old comedy writer who created the massively popular Twitter feed of the same name.
Things My Son Needs to Know About the World
Fredrik Backman
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Man Called Ove shares an irresistible and moving collection of heartfelt, humorous essays about fatherhood, providing his newborn son with the perspective and tools he’ll need to make his way in the world.
Your Dad Stole My Rake and Other Family Dilemmas
Tom Papa
Stand-up comedian and family man Tom Papa explores how we deal with our inescapable relatives and their bizarre behavior. A warm, hilarious book that saws deep into every branch of the family tree and uncovers the most hysterical and surprisingly meaningful aspects of our lives.
Biography And Memoir
Big Russ and Me
Father and Son: Lessons of Life
Tim Russert
The author offers a memoir of life with his father, a proud World War II veteran, describing growing up in 1950s Buffalo, the influence of his Catholic upbringing, and the importance of hard work, responsibility, and patriotism.
Dad’s Maybe Book
Tim O’Brien
The best-selling author of The Things They Carried shares wisdom from a life in letters; lessons learned in wartime; and the challenges, humor and rewards of raising two sons.
Dreams From My Father
A Story of Race and Inheritance
Barack Obama
The son of an African father and white American mother discusses his childhood in Hawaii, his struggle to find his identity as an African American, and his life accomplishments.
Father’s Day
A Journey Into the Mind and Heart of My Extraordinary Son
Buzz Bissinger
The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Friday Night Lights recounts a father-son road trip during which he gained insights into the worldviews, challenges and talents of his socially challenged savant son, Zach
A Good Man
Rediscovering My Father, Sargent Shriver
Mark K. Shriver
In an intimate portrait of an extraordinary father-son relationship, the author discovers the moral principles that guided his legendary father–the man who founded the Peace Corps and designed President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty–and applies them to his own life.
Hockey Dad
True Confessions of a (Crazy?) Hockey Parent
Bob McKenzie
A revealing look at the good, the bad, and the ugly of minor hockey culture Known as TSN’s “Hockey Insider,” Canada’s Bob McKenzie is synonymous with the sport and one of its most respected analysts. In Hockey Dad, McKenzie describes firsthand the joys and heartbreak of raising two sons, with entirely diverging athletic futures.
Let Her Fly
A Father’s Journey
Ziauddin Yousafzai
The father of Malala Yousafzai traces his journey from an unconfident, stammering little boy living in a mud hut in Pakistan to a man who has broken with tradition and proven there are many faces of feminism.
Manhood for Amateurs
The Pleasures and Regrets of a Husband, Father, and Son
Michael Chabon
The author questions what it means to be a man today in a series of interlinked autobiographical reflections, regrets, and reexaminations, each sparked by an encounter, in the present, that holds some legacy of the past.
Miracle in Shreveport
A Memoir of Baseball, Fatherhood, and the Stadium That Launched a Dream
David Benham, Jason Benham
Two twin brothers recount the large influence that local minor-league baseball had on their childhood in Shreveport, Louisiana.
My Father Left Me Ireland
An American Son’s Search for Home
Michael Brendan Dougherty
The senior editor at National Review and son of an absent Irishman describes his urge for a sense of cultural belonging after his daughter was born and chronicles his quest to study Gaelic and bury himself in Irish history.
My Year of Running Dangerously
A Dad, a Daughter, and a Ridiculous Plan
Tom Foreman
The author recounts his journey from a half-hearted couch potato to an ultra-marathon runner at the side of his teenaged daughter, describing his training and participation in ambitious races and how his effort strengthened family bonds.
The New One
Painfully True Stories From a Reluctant Dad
Mike Birbiglia
With humorous parenting observations, a New York Times best-selling author and award-winning comedian delivers a book for anyone who has ever raised a child, been a child, or refuses to stop acting like one.
The Voluntourist
A Six-Country Tale of Love, Loss, Fatherhood, Fate, and Singing Bon Jovi in Bethlehem
Ken Budd
After the sudden death of his father, the author, the executive editor of AARP The Magazine, embarks on a journey of voluntourism, part do-gooder manifesto, part personal journey, around the world where he decides to make a difference and live a life that matters.
Why My Wife Thinks I’m an Idiot
The Life and Times of a Sportscaster Dad
Mike Greenberg
A humorous collection of journal entries recounts the everyday adventures and misadventures of one of America’ most popular sportscasters, sharing his thoughts on such topics as marriage, fatherhood, manhood, and the significance of sports.
The Wine Lover’s Daughter
A Memoir
Anne Fadiman
An award-winning author and essayist delves into her relationship with her father, a wine lover, by tracing his infatuation with the potent potable, from a glass he drank in Paris in 1927 to the one he had on his 80th birthday.