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Never Had a Dad: A Hilarious and Heartfelt New Memoir Perfect for Fans of Jenette McCurdy and Jon Ronson
Fatherless, friendly 31yoF looking for intrepid M50s-70s who wants to try being a father figure (not sugar daddy).
Georgie Codd never had a dad. And she didn’t think that would ever change – until a stranger’s practical joke made her wonder if she could find one. So began her quest for a father figure, placing ‘dadverts’ in newspapers, magazines and corners of the internet she thought the fatherly might frequent.
Along with the conversations, meetings and the twists and turns of seeking family relationships with strangers comes a curious look at the societal, cultural and biological functions of fatherhood. What makes someone decide to have or not have a child? What is the experience for single parents, for queer communities, for people rejected by born family – or for those who do the rejecting? And why did so many of the men contacting Georgie hound her for a horny time?
By turns brilliant and bonkers, hilarious and poignant, this is an unexpected story of the strange, intimate things we mean when we talk about family.
Georgie Codd never had a dad. And she didn’t think that would ever change – until a stranger’s practical joke made her wonder if she could find one. So began her quest for a father figure, placing ‘dadverts’ in newspapers, magazines and corners of the internet she thought the fatherly might frequent.
Along with the conversations, meetings and the twists and turns of seeking family relationships with strangers comes a curious look at the societal, cultural and biological functions of fatherhood. What makes someone decide to have or not have a child? What is the experience for single parents, for queer communities, for people rejected by born family – or for those who do the rejecting? And why did so many of the men contacting Georgie hound her for a horny time?
By turns brilliant and bonkers, hilarious and poignant, this is an unexpected story of the strange, intimate things we mean when we talk about family.
- GenresNonfictionMemoir
376 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 6, 2024
6 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 31, 2024
The same relatable and compelling tone as her first book, We Swim to the Shark, this is an addictive read. It is a fraught journey to find the perfect dad. It really made me think about what would be on my list of criteria, whether they are met by my actual dad, whether it matters if they aren't, and why I want those things. I enjoyed how aspects of sociology and anthropology were woven through this very personal memoir. To me, it really highlighted how just as you can't expect all your needs to be met by one romantic partner, nor can you expect them to be met by a parent, and that it's ok and even healthy to find maternal and paternal inputs from a range of people, whatever those terms mean to each of us.
December 1, 2024
هذا الكتاب يجب أن يقرأ في النوادي حيث سيدور جدال ممتع ، ليس لان الأفكار المطروحة شائكة بل لان المؤلفة تقول شيء وتفعل عكسه ، تضع وجهات نظر معارضة لمفهوم الأسرة الطبيعي لكنها تبحث عن أب .. التخبط سيختلف القراء في تحليله و قدرة تحمله .
جورجي عاشت معضم حياتها بلا أب ، أبوها يعيش مع المرأة التي تزوجها ومع أبنته ، يخطر على بالها فكرة تجربة البحث عن أب .. تعلن عن نفسها ، امرأة ثلاثينية تريد رجل خمسيني ليكون أبوها.
تطرح المؤلفة الاسئلة بينما تستعرض وتجرب الآباء المختلفين و الوهميين الذين يراسلونها، اسئلة عميقة عن مفهوم الأبوة؟ دور الأب في الأسرة؟ حال الطفل بلا أب ومستقبله؟ ، تنحاز المؤلفة إلى التيار الليبرالي ما بعد الحداثة فهي لا تناقش تيار الشذوذ و التحول ولا تطرح آراء مخالفة .
هل يمكن أن يكون رجل خمسيني غريب أب لمرأة ثلاثينية؟ جميعنا نضحك على السؤال حتى المؤلفة نفسها فالنهاية تكشف لنا حقيقة الرحلة .. جورجي تريد شخص يقف نيابة عن والدها لتعاتبه .. لم تبحث عن أب فهي تعلم أين هو ، والنهاية تكشف أيضا عبث أسئلتها فهي لم تنبع من عقل باحث بل من عقل متلاعب يحجب عن الذات حقيقة الشعور ليرفع احساس النقص و القهر ... أجابت جورجي على سؤال الأبوة و دور الأب حين راحت تحكي لممثل مستأجر عن مشاعرها ورغباتها.
رحلة ممتعة رغم الاستفزاز الذي اصطحبني .
❞A SOCIAL EXPERIMENT FOR 2019.
Friendly, fatherless 31-year-old woman seeks intrepid man,50s to 70s, who may be willing to take on the role of father figure. This is a personal adventure; could be long-term, maybe not.
Who knows?
Email: neverhadadad87@gmail.com ❝
جورجي عاشت معضم حياتها بلا أب ، أبوها يعيش مع المرأة التي تزوجها ومع أبنته ، يخطر على بالها فكرة تجربة البحث عن أب .. تعلن عن نفسها ، امرأة ثلاثينية تريد رجل خمسيني ليكون أبوها.
❞‘For a child,’ Jeremy told me, ‘whether a father is present or not, the idea of a father is there, whether they want that idea or not: it just is there. Whatever the route to fatherhood, whatever the story of why he’s not there,it’s a very powerful thing for a child. Of course, you don’t stop being a child by becoming an adult in that meaning of “child”. You remain the child of your mother and father, or whoever your parents are, for your whole life. That’s a position that you carry with you until your dying breath.’ ❝
تطرح المؤلفة الاسئلة بينما تستعرض وتجرب الآباء المختلفين و الوهميين الذين يراسلونها، اسئلة عميقة عن مفهوم الأبوة؟ دور الأب في الأسرة؟ حال الطفل بلا أب ومستقبله؟ ، تنحاز المؤلفة إلى التيار الليبرالي ما بعد الحداثة فهي لا تناقش تيار الشذوذ و التحول ولا تطرح آراء مخالفة .
❞ ‘But if you didn’t get any love
back from your children,’ she said, ‘you wouldn’t be such a good parent. Children need to love their parents, and they need to feel love, and that’s when they turn into human beings and not monsters. They need to be able to give love back because giving love back gets them more love in return. It’s like a virtuous circle of love.’❝
هل يمكن أن يكون رجل خمسيني غريب أب لمرأة ثلاثينية؟ جميعنا نضحك على السؤال حتى المؤلفة نفسها فالنهاية تكشف لنا حقيقة الرحلة .. جورجي تريد شخص يقف نيابة عن والدها لتعاتبه .. لم تبحث عن أب فهي تعلم أين هو ، والنهاية تكشف أيضا عبث أسئلتها فهي لم تنبع من عقل باحث بل من عقل متلاعب يحجب عن الذات حقيقة الشعور ليرفع احساس النقص و القهر ... أجابت جورجي على سؤال الأبوة و دور الأب حين راحت تحكي لممثل مستأجر عن مشاعرها ورغباتها.
رحلة ممتعة رغم الاستفزاز الذي اصطحبني .
June 15, 2025
Never Had a Dad by Georgie Codd
If ever there was an appropriate day to post this review, it’s probably today. This week I had the pleasure of seeing Georgie Codd talk about the paperback release of her book, within 24 hours of coming away from that talk I’d completely devoured the book.
Never Had a Dad follows Georgie in a quest to research a question that she didn’t have the answer for, what is it like to have a dad? What does a dad do? Questions that I can well relate to as I too grew up fatherless.
Georgie decided that in order to find the answers to this she’d conduct her own social experiment and the book follows her journey from drawing up her “dadverts”, to where to place them and all the hilarity that ensued from emails she received to eventually meeting with some of the men who wanted to be in her life as her stand in dad. The his is not to say it’s all laughs, there’s a lot of raw emotion in this book, and if you make it to the end in one sitting you truly will have felt the full force of those. Georgie captures the longing to know the other part of you perfectly, and interestingly research that backs up that men are just as broody and parental as women. I’m not sure if that last snippet of information helped or made me feel worse to know, I’m sure my therapist is going to be grateful for the confusion in our future sessions 😂
Georgie said she has another book in the works, and I can’t wait to see what experiment she has up her sleeve next!
Growing up I obsessed over the idea of finding and getting to know my Dad, to the point I’m sure my poor Mum wanted me to simply shut the fuck up. I got the chance to finally get to know him in my late teens, I’m now 39 with no greater knowledge of who this man was and struggled to get a simple text back so much that I gave up. I think I’ve mostly drawn the conclusion that if someone doesn’t want to know you, they’ll just keep showing that hand no matter how desperately you want to be loved. So this Father’s Day, I want to say thanks to all the Mums and extended family members who try to hold together the pieces of children growing up knowing that one half of them abandoned them. You’re the real rock stars.
If ever there was an appropriate day to post this review, it’s probably today. This week I had the pleasure of seeing Georgie Codd talk about the paperback release of her book, within 24 hours of coming away from that talk I’d completely devoured the book.
Never Had a Dad follows Georgie in a quest to research a question that she didn’t have the answer for, what is it like to have a dad? What does a dad do? Questions that I can well relate to as I too grew up fatherless.
Georgie decided that in order to find the answers to this she’d conduct her own social experiment and the book follows her journey from drawing up her “dadverts”, to where to place them and all the hilarity that ensued from emails she received to eventually meeting with some of the men who wanted to be in her life as her stand in dad. The his is not to say it’s all laughs, there’s a lot of raw emotion in this book, and if you make it to the end in one sitting you truly will have felt the full force of those. Georgie captures the longing to know the other part of you perfectly, and interestingly research that backs up that men are just as broody and parental as women. I’m not sure if that last snippet of information helped or made me feel worse to know, I’m sure my therapist is going to be grateful for the confusion in our future sessions 😂
Georgie said she has another book in the works, and I can’t wait to see what experiment she has up her sleeve next!
Growing up I obsessed over the idea of finding and getting to know my Dad, to the point I’m sure my poor Mum wanted me to simply shut the fuck up. I got the chance to finally get to know him in my late teens, I’m now 39 with no greater knowledge of who this man was and struggled to get a simple text back so much that I gave up. I think I’ve mostly drawn the conclusion that if someone doesn’t want to know you, they’ll just keep showing that hand no matter how desperately you want to be loved. So this Father’s Day, I want to say thanks to all the Mums and extended family members who try to hold together the pieces of children growing up knowing that one half of them abandoned them. You’re the real rock stars.
August 6, 2024
Someone NEEDS to make a film or tv series from this book! I love this author's creativity with her life – and that we, as readers, get to share in it – who else would think to put a 'dadvert' in national magazines, in response to not having a dad? I wish all people and books were so original! As with her last book (We Swim To the Shark, where she conquered her fear of fish by swimming with bigger and bigger fish around the world!), I really enjoyed Codd's gutsy, witty, funny, reflective, adventurous and curious personality on every page. Never Had A Dad roams between bizzare situations (and many even odder emails from would-be-dads) - some hilarious, some toe-curling, some worrying – to poignant moments of self reflection of what it means not to have a dad, and the impact of that on the author, as well as her family. NHAD is also an enquiry into more generally what it means to be a dad, to not be through choice or otherwise, to have a dad, and to not have a dad, and raises important issues and questions about fatherhood, masculinity, and parenting in the modern world. As someone who is lucky enough to have a great dad it also made me reflect on what it must be like for the many millions of fatherless people around the world. I highly recommend this book!
October 17, 2025
Georgie Codd has never had a dad, and she never thought would, until a stranger's practical joke made her wonder if she could find one. So began a quest to to find a father figure, putting out 'dadverts' in newspapers, magazines and other corners of the internet where potential fathers may frequent. Alongside this adventure, Georgie undertakes a lot of research about the societal, cultural and biological functions of fatherhood. What makes someone decide to have or not have a child? What is the experience for single parents, for queer communities, for people rejected by their born family - or for those who do the rejecting?
Another non-fiction pick for book club! This had such a unique and interesting premise, and I was curious to see if this experiment would really work - can Georgie really find a dad from adverts she puts out in newspapers and magazines? You’ll have to read to find out… My favourite part of the book was the research about fatherhood, especially the anthropology of parenting, and how when people become parents, as they spend time with their child, both men’s and women’s hormones change to biologically prime them for parenting. In dads this means their testosterone drops, making the impact of oxytocin and dopamine higher.
I did find the pace of the book slow and I found myself more interested in the science than in the dadvert experiment, but found it was okay overall. I’d recommend it if you are intrigued by the premise of the book, or are studying relationships in families, particularly parent-child relationships.
Another non-fiction pick for book club! This had such a unique and interesting premise, and I was curious to see if this experiment would really work - can Georgie really find a dad from adverts she puts out in newspapers and magazines? You’ll have to read to find out… My favourite part of the book was the research about fatherhood, especially the anthropology of parenting, and how when people become parents, as they spend time with their child, both men’s and women’s hormones change to biologically prime them for parenting. In dads this means their testosterone drops, making the impact of oxytocin and dopamine higher.
I did find the pace of the book slow and I found myself more interested in the science than in the dadvert experiment, but found it was okay overall. I’d recommend it if you are intrigued by the premise of the book, or are studying relationships in families, particularly parent-child relationships.
March 18, 2025
Wow I loved this book.
You will too, mainly as you are taken on an amazing journey as Georgina Codd describes every detail of her amazing journey to find a father figure.
She writes in such a way as to make us readers feel like we are being told an amazing story by an old friend. It’s a true story that’s so incredible that it strikes up the “truth is stranger than fiction” idea in my mind.
Sometimes it’s sad, sometimes hilarious and always beautifully poignant and captivating.
I loved how the notion of fatherhood is explored in different cultures and species throughout the authors journey to find a father figure.
It’s basically a fun text book for anyone interested in parenthood or parenting, family therapy, Peer Assisted Open Dialogue, and everybody who loves good books that you can’t put down.
You will too, mainly as you are taken on an amazing journey as Georgina Codd describes every detail of her amazing journey to find a father figure.
She writes in such a way as to make us readers feel like we are being told an amazing story by an old friend. It’s a true story that’s so incredible that it strikes up the “truth is stranger than fiction” idea in my mind.
Sometimes it’s sad, sometimes hilarious and always beautifully poignant and captivating.
I loved how the notion of fatherhood is explored in different cultures and species throughout the authors journey to find a father figure.
It’s basically a fun text book for anyone interested in parenthood or parenting, family therapy, Peer Assisted Open Dialogue, and everybody who loves good books that you can’t put down.
August 1, 2024
Starting with a practical joke, which leads to the INSANE idea of placing adverts to find a man who could be a father figure, this book is, in turns, hilarious, thought-provoking, shocking and moving. I really liked Georgie's first book, We Swim To The Shark, but I LOVED this one.
Reflections on what it means / what it takes to be a parent, interwoven with Georgie's own personal journey and emotions around her absent father made for compelling reading. Having had a traditional biological family upbringing and a somewhat strained relationship with my own father, it really made me think about parenting and relationships in the 21st century.
A really original, refreshing book
Reflections on what it means / what it takes to be a parent, interwoven with Georgie's own personal journey and emotions around her absent father made for compelling reading. Having had a traditional biological family upbringing and a somewhat strained relationship with my own father, it really made me think about parenting and relationships in the 21st century.
A really original, refreshing book
June 29, 2024
Never had a dad by Georgie Codd is such an interesting story. It follows Georgie who while on a cruise with her mum acts out a father daughter joke. This leads to her deciding she wants to know what it is like to have a dad as her own dad has never been present in her life. She places adverts in various magazines looking for someone to take on a father role for her.
She also research's studies into fathers and how they or lack of them affect children's behaviours and lives.
I enjoyed reading this book and getting to know how it all ends for Georgie.
She also research's studies into fathers and how they or lack of them affect children's behaviours and lives.
I enjoyed reading this book and getting to know how it all ends for Georgie.
August 6, 2024
Unique and yet universal. Moving personal quest meets mad social experiment – this is a must-read whether you had a Dad or not! Codd’s voice is clear, throughtful and funny as she navigates her own story of fatherlessness and asks what might have been, if only … She takes on a deep investigation into what it means to have or to be a Dad, and seeks, by brilliantly bonkers means, to fill a gap in her own life whose shape is only part known. Like her first book, We Swim to The Shark, here Codd sets off on a mission that few of us would ever have the balls to take on. Highly recommend!
July 31, 2024
This book is a great read. Funny, moving and thought-provoking. It makes you think about what it is to be a dad and question your qualities.
However, it's far more than that. It looks at the role of parenthood in different cultures and offers a fascinating sociological insight into the values that underpin them.
But above all, it's a heart-rending account of Georgina's lifelong struggle to come to terms with being abandoned by her father. It's a must-read classic.
However, it's far more than that. It looks at the role of parenthood in different cultures and offers a fascinating sociological insight into the values that underpin them.
But above all, it's a heart-rending account of Georgina's lifelong struggle to come to terms with being abandoned by her father. It's a must-read classic.
August 6, 2025
A really beautifully written memoir that had me chuckling whilst listening to the audiobook. The added statistics and research, which in many cases were completely shocking, really brought this novel to life. Georgie is a really likeable character who turns quite a traumatic experience into a really heartfelt and humorous book that I just couldn't put down. Would highly recommend this to anyone and everyone!
February 7, 2025
I really enjoyed this memoir about how Georgie was trying to find a dad figure and the different avenues she took.
I loved how she interspersed this with facts and interviews from different people who had written about father figures, whether it be in different countries or how society moulds people a certain way.
Definitely one I would recommend.
I loved how she interspersed this with facts and interviews from different people who had written about father figures, whether it be in different countries or how society moulds people a certain way.
Definitely one I would recommend.
August 12, 2024
The story flows very nicely and the book has some interesting angles - to my taste some turns in the story were elaborated slightly too long
June 4, 2025
Read this as part of some personal things to work out and have to say found it thoroughly interesting. Thought provoking and just wonderfully written. Will stay with me for a long time.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews