The Dad Dialogues: A Correspondence on Fatherhood

by George Bowering, Charles Demers

In this unique book of correspondence, two men from different generations write to each other about the burdens, anxieties, and singular joys of parenthood. Thirtysomething Charles Demers and 80-year-old George Bowering are both celebrated authors and the best of friends, and soon both will be the fathers of daughters. The letters begin as Charles and his wife discover they will become parents; he expresses his hopes and fears of impending fatherhood, compounded by his OCD and his own father's illness, while George recalls his own experiences raising a daughter in the 1970s and his own anxieties about bringing a child into a troubled world. Together, their thoughtful, funny, candid missives reveal what fathers know (or don't know) about raising daughters, as well as themselves and each other. Their combined observations make for a passionate, funny and moving portrait of fatherhood in all its imperfect, beautiful glory. George Bowering is Canada's first poet laureate and an officer of the Order of Canada. He is the author of more than eighty books, the most recent of which include The Hockey Scribbler , Writing the Okanagan , and Pinboy . He lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. Charles Demers is a comedian, performer, and writer. His previous books are The Horrors (Douglas & McIntyre) and Vancouver Special (Arsenal). He lives in Vancouver, where he teaches writing at the University of British Columbia.

288 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2016

About the author

George Bowering was born and brought up in the Okanagan Valley, amid sand dunes and sagebrush, but he has lived in Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta — great sources of hockey stars. Along the way he has stopped to write several books on baseball. He has also picked up Governor General’s Awards for his poetry and fiction, and otherwise been rewarded with prizes for his books, except in his home province of British Columbia. His earlier ECW book, His Life, was a finalist for the Governor General’s Award for 2000. He lives in Vancouver.

Reviews

[Merritt K.]

Charlie Demers is as charming and thoughtful here as ever, though I have to admit I didn't know who George Bowering was going in and didn't enjoy his sections nearly as much. A lot of the book is dedicated to the lead-up to birth rather than raising a kid, and I might have liked a little less of that and a little more room for Charlie to express his feelings around socialism and feminism as they pertain to childrearing, but it was still a fun read.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billed as "A correspondence on fatherhood (and the universe)" this book is an intimate exchange between two fathers at different stages of parenthood and adulthood. Funny, heart-breaking, and revelatory this book made me laugh and cry, often at the same time (which is familiar territory for a parent). Yes, I do want to pre-order Cara's side of the story now!