Tommy & Me: The Making of a Dad - Hardcover

Stein, Ben

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0684838966 ISBN 13: 9780684838960

Publisher: Free Press, 1998

Synopsis

The author recounts his slow conversion from self-interested, career-oriented baby boomer to loving and caring father

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

Stein, an actor and former speechwriter who worked for President Nixon in 1987, together with his wife, Alex, adopted baby Tommy that year. The author's relationship with his new son got off to a rocky start: he was so jealous of the attention Tommy was receiving that he stayed away from home for long periods of time. Attendance at 12-step groups and the inspiring example of a fellow father whom he met on vacation in Idaho helped Stein become a highly involved parent, "once I got my priorities straight." Although his devotion and commitment to Tommy documented here may one day mean a great deal to his son, Stein's effusive descriptions of the joys of parenthood occasionally overwhelm this slight book with schmaltz. The author concludes with his "Ten Commandments of Fatherhood," which stress such well-intended advice as the importance of patience and the value of praise in parenting. However, many will feel that Stein steps in over his head when he opines that "children with absent fathers are wounded for the balance of their lives."
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal:

An actor, screenwriter, lawyer, former Nixon speechwriter, and author (The Manhattan Gambit, LJ 3/15/83), Stein weaves together the story of becoming a father and building a relationship with his son. From a rocky start (he even moved out of the house to avoid his son as an infant!) to his current feeling ("The nucleus of the atom of my life is my love and duty to Tommy"), he presents a personal narrative on the joys of fatherhood. Throughout, the reader can experience Stein's emotions and growth as a parent. Not a "how-to" parenting book, this will nevertheless teach parents much about the importance of their relationships with their children. Recommended for public libraries and father's day presents.?Kay L. Brodie, Chesapeake Coll., Wye Mills, MD
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Free Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0684838966
• ISBN 13: 9780684838960
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 176