Finding Time for Fatherhood

Finding for Fatherhood by Bruce Linton, Ph.D. founder of the FathersForum.com

The essays in Finding Time for Fatherhood express the important concerns men encounter when they become parents. Each chapter is followed by three questions for further self-reflection and discussion. A crisp, poignant, self-revealing and powerfully instructive book that will provide a great deal of previously unavailable support, guidance and inspiration to all men who want to be good fathers but have questioned how to think and talk about the role.

Reader's comments:

As the father of a two-year-old son, I have read a dozen books on fathering in recent months, and Bruce Linton's Finding Time For Fatherhood is my favorite. Why? A new generation of men understand that fatherhood requires more than being an economic provider. Their desire to be involved, nurturing parents reflects a fundamental shift in male identity. They want more from life than a pay check and a promotion. They want meaning and purpose, and there is no greater contribution to the world than raising a healthy and happy child. Dr. Linton raises important issues concerning values and the father's inner experience. He writes simply and honestly, as only one who has truly lived and integrated the material can do. 

Dr. Linton's essays are thoughtful and fascinating in their variety (they range from revisiting the Oedipus myth, to looking at the men's movement, to examining the role food and meals play in the family, to discussing sex and fatherhood),  it is his final essay, "What My Son Taught Me About Being a Man," that most effectively captures his vision of what it means to grow up male, and to be a father. This moving account traces his life as an equal partner in his son Morgan's upbringing. He also details his experience teaching a group of his 9-year-old son's peers that "real men" care for their friends' feelings. Such touching anecdotes convince readers that, at least where fathering is concerned, change is in the air--the old-fashioned, hands-off father is on the way out. This small, vital collection of essays is a welcome addition to the growing body of fathering literature, and will be valuable to men at all stages of fatherhood. --Ericka Lutz

Readers looking to monitor how modern men think about parenthood should take a look at Finding Time for Fatherhood, a book of essays by Bruce Linton, Ph.D., Berkeley-based founder of the Fathers' Forum. The 20 essays in this volume run the gamut of men's concerns with fatherhood, including: sex and parenthood, a mate's pregnancy, educating children, sports and gender roles, and relationships with one's own father. Linton writes from the heart, and although he is very much a Bay Area dad in his take on most his topics, he's never afraid to express a view that doesn't quite fit in with political correctness. -- Parents Press, The Monthly Newspaper for Bay Area Parents, Berkeley, CA.

A must read for moms!
by vghon

While Linton's focus is on new fathers and fatherhood, I, an older mom, found much to reflect upon while reading this book, such as my relationship with my own dad, my recollections and feelings about my dad's parenting of my sister and myself, my husband as mate, worker, and dad while we were bringing up our two children, and the importance of my female support group, and the absence of such a support system for my husband during these early parenting years. So--this is not only a book to give new dads, it's one to encourage dialogue between moms and dads, and an appreciation of the needs that each partner brings to the job of parenting.
5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book!

By Dad of Divas
TOP 1000 REVIEWER

This was a well-written book that will make you rethink the ways in which you parent your own children, as well as think about fatherhood in general. You can tell that the author understands some of the deep rooted concerns of many fathers, any shares with readers through an honest inquiry and insightful examination of the issues themselves. On top of the stove the book is very practical in nature in regards to helping the reader overcome some of these issues and become even better fathers in the end. The book is very motivational and inspirational and you can tell is aimed at changing some of the cultural mores that exist in our current society as they relate to men and manhood. The book also will helps you to better reflect on the own experiences that you had not only in being a father, but also in relationships that you may have with your own father. 
5.0 out of 5 stars

The Often Forgotten Parent
by Meryl Neimanon

When women become moms, we are bombarded with advice and instantly welcomed into the community of motherhood. Before reading Dr. Linton's book, I hadn't thought about the lack of support that men receive. When my son was born, I had a mom's group to help me muddle through; but my husband just had to wing it. Dr. Linton offers an insightful look into the meaning of fatherhood and helps both men and women understand the journey that men take when embracing their new role. I think it's wonderful that Dr. Linton teaches a "becoming a father" class and leads dad groups. I hope his book can offer support to men who don't have that opportunity, help moms better understand the experience of parenthood from a dad's perspective, and perhaps inspire more dad classes and support groups around the country!
5.0 out of 5 stars

A Must-Read for New and Experienced Dads
by Jason Safferon

Bruce Linton offers us his profound and well-grounded wisdom in a very readable and engaging volume. A must-read for men contemplating fatherhood and for fathers, both new and experienced, who wish to understand the experience they've been going through. Bruce helps men overcome that deep sense of isolation that can cause such added stress to the experience of being a father, and he helps us tap into, and bring into the lives of our children and family, our deepest abilities to be emotionally and physically present. To learn to do that allows men to deeply savor and appreciate the gift of fatherhood. Bruce has been a pioneer in the empowerment of men to be, truly, all they can be: present, loving, involved, accessible. In his latest book on how fatherhood changes men, he not only takes us to the next level of understanding the experience of fatherhood, but also offers a heartfelt and well-articulated guide to help us create being the kind of father many of us wish we had when we were growing up.
Jason Saffer, MFT, Co-Director
The Center for Creative Growth - Counseling with Heart

5.0 out of 5 stars
This is the perfect book for all fathers and fathers-to-be!

Bruce Linton's "Finding Time for Fatherhood" is a gem of truth, wisdom, and most of all compassion for the challenges that a father faces in today's world. As the father of a 10- year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter, I intended to give this book to my brother, who is expecting his first child. However, I ended up getting another copy for myself, because it became clear to me that this is a book that I will want to keep near and return to many times over, for inspiration and guidance in those times when I'm feeling overwhelmed by the anxieties and responsibilities of parenthood. This book was an acknowledgement of all the best intentions I have ever had toward my children, and at the same time a reminder of how much further I have to go. Probably like many fathers of my generation, I take for granted that I will be a better father to my son and daughter than my father was to me. According to the author, 95% of us attend the births of our children, versus 5% in 1965. We participate in childbirth classes, coach our wives through the delivery, and generally feel superior to our parents' generation in how much we are involved in what used to be a woman's exclusive world. Once the reality of fatherhood sets in, however, we discover that the real challenge is not so much a matter of measuring up to an ideal image of what a father should be, but the much more difficult problem of shifting our own priorities and making room in our lives for our roles as fathers. Dr. Linton demonstrates through examples from his personal experience as a father how uncomfortable this can be at times, yet how thoroughly rewarding in what that commitment ultimately can mean to our children, our spouses, and ourselves.

One of the most meaningful fathering books available!

As the father of a two-year-old son, I have read a dozen books on fathering in recent months, and Bruce Linton's Finding Time For Fatherhood is my favorite. Why? A new generation of men understand that fatherhood requires more than being an economic provider. Their desire to be involved, nurturing parents reflects a fundamental shift in male identity. They want more from life than a pay check and a promotion. They want meaning and purpose, and there is no greater contribution to the world than raising a healthy and happy child. Dr. Linton raises important issues concerning values and the father's inner experience. He writes simply and honestly, as only one who has truly lived and integrated the material can do. On several occasions he shares feelings that I, as a new father, feared were unique to me, which was reassuring and affirming. You can read this book in one evening, but the thoughts and feelings in it will stay with you for weeks. Highly recommended.

Jerry M. Ruhl, Ph.D., co-author with Robert A. Johnson of Balancing Heaven and Earth (HarperSanFrancisco, 1998) and Contentment: A Way to True Happiness (HarperSanFrancisco, April 1999).

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars  
By Dwight Bennetton February 16, 2016
Format: Paperback|Verified Purchase
We need more books like this one!

An incredible guide

This book shows the road ahead for fathers and expectant fathers. I have been looking for a book that could help me to cope and understand the awesome responsibility,joy and enlightenment of being a father. I wish my father had read this book. I refer to it often.

QUESTION?
By A customer  Format: Paperback
I would like to know if this book is available in Spanish?

5.0 out of 5 stars Each chapter is hallmarked with questions at the end.
by Midwest Book Review
Format: Paperback

Bruce Lindon is a licensed marriage and family therapist who draws upon his years of experience and expertise to provide men with insights into the emotional challenges confronting present-day dads in Finding Time For Fatherhood. With text ideal for the non-specialist general reader, each chapter is hallmarked with questions at the end to provide the reader with a chance to consider personal experiences and discuss the issues raised with their spouse, partner, or other dads. Finding Time For Fatherhood is a valued and much appreciated contribution to the growing library of parenting books in general, and male parenting in particular.

By Jeanice Barceloon
Format: Kindle Edition

Although this book is geared toward fathers, as a woman and a mother, I found this book invaluable. It is filled with insights and information that helped me better understand the man's experience as he becomes a father. The book contains a tremendous amount of important and compassionate information, all of which can help us better understand what new father's are really going through and how they really feel! In a world where information about parenthood is almost always geared toward the mother, this book is a refreshing addition to my library and is a must read for those who want to get a deep sense of the transformation that takes place when a child is born. I applaud Bruce Linton for this incredible piece of work and encourage everyone who is concerned about parenting to read this book.