Father Fiction: Chapters for a Fatherless Generation

I think that other reviewers have misinterpretted the intentions of Donald Miller in this book. The subtitle is "Reflections On Growing Up Without A Father". This is an individual who is sharing the lessons that he has learned from his experience, to expect something more than that is shifting the author's role from narrative to self-help (God help us if Donald Miller starts writing self-help books!) That being said, this book is heartfelt and honest. Miller talks about how he learned lessons later in life that he felt others had grown up knowing. There are times when his writing is piercing and other times when its humorous. Expect typical Donald Miller (slightly meandering but honest) with a tinge of extraction of life lessons. I've recommended this to several of my male friends who also grew up without fathers and am wholeheartedly recommending it to you.

The best authors take our half-formed thoughts on an issue and animate them with their words, and here Donald Miller does it again. The strength of TOaD flows from Don's ability to vulnerably and creatively display the wrestling of his own life through the issues of coming of age in a dad-depleted home/society(see the stats in the back of the book). He doesn't leave us hanging in the angst of growing up without a father, however, but instead delivers tremendous hope to young men (young being relative) in the context of his experiential Father-Son relationship with God. His reflections do not appear fluffy, but solidly won, and invite us therefore into our own intimate communion with God our perfect Father, an analogy God can live up to when given the chance. I agree with Jeff Foxworthy: this book spoke to a place deep inside me, and helped me wrestle with how I relate to God as my Dad. This book is not therapy nor is it an in-depth theological study of the "Father" aspects of God. It is one man's testimony of his journey from arrogant victim to wounded healer. I would highly recommend this important book, then, not only to young men but to men and women of all ages desiring maturity in Life and communion with God.

I am a non-Christian woman with a father, and I picked this book up because I really enjoyed Blue Like Jazz and love Donald Miller's writing style. Miller writes from the heart, and so even though his childhood experience wasn't like my own, I felt a lot of connection with and interest in his story. First, this is definitely a book aimed at Christians or those people who at the very least do not mind people talking about God and the nature of our relationship with God. Miller's particular journey led him to allow God to father him in a sense, and for him, letting go of some of the anger and resentment he felt for being fatherless involved thinking about the things which boys and men get from fathers and trying to allow God to provide for him in those ways. Miller talks about his journey towards maturity and manhood and what those things mean to him. He tells us about the men in his life who have mentored him and talks about the lessons and gifts he has recieved from each experience with these mentors. He keeps it very personal and doesn't try to tell everyone else what will work for them; this isn't a self-help book, rather a personal exploration of what manhood means to a Christian, and how he personally got through some of the minefields and tough times and grew into Godly manhood. The way he kept it so personal made it a good read for anyone. Many of us have parents who didn't provide for our every emotional need or who sometimes had problems of their own, and Miller's experiences and insights are broadly interesting enough to make it a good read for anybody. If you aren't a fatherless man, though, I'd recommend Blue Like Jazz as your introduction to Miller's work - read this one second.

Donald Miller's latest project will unfortunately hit home for a great number of people. Miller's writing isn't unfortunate, it's actually direct, poignant, and much needed. The unfortunate part is that there are countless people in our world who have either grown up without a father, or are in the process of braving their childhood alone. Miller opens his life for the reader and traces the uncertainty and anger that mark the life of many who have no father to anchor their lives. Miller's words are encouraging and never preachy. "To Own a Dragon" is a not only a great read for those working through issues relating to their fathers, but for those aspiring to be influential father themselves.

Donald Miller continues his pattern of offering wise words dressed in comfortable, if often surprising, clothes. This is not Blue Like Jazz 2: The Fatherless Years. Nor is it Searching for My Father (God Knows Why?). To Own a Dragon is a work unto itself. To a large degree, all of Don's writing is autobiographical--that's part of its appeal. But this one gets to the core of Donald Miller--The Man. While it surely offers plenty of friendly and wise advice, what really captures the reader in Dragon is Don's willingness to lay bare his ongoing struggle with what it really means to be a man. It's a struggle many men (even those with good and present fathers) have experienced and continue to experience. That doesn't mean it isn't for women, too. As Don would probably even tell you, women will likely find things in his story that men will not--good things, thoughtful things. Things that only women would understand. While it may seem a bit uneven at times (Don's stories continue to be the most brilliant examples of writing in modern Christian literature but his theology--though generally strong--sometimes paints a picture of a man fumbling for solid handholds during a particularly complex climb), the overall result is more than satisfying. Sometimes poignant, sometimes frustrating, the journey Don takes to discover what it means to be a man is one worth taking. Not just for Don, but for the reader as well. There aren't many non-fiction writers today who can make readers laugh one minute, daub a tear the next, and follow that up with thoughts that reach deep into the soul and demand immediate and sometimes lifelong wrestling. Highly recommended. [Also reading: Restless Faith by Winn Collier--another great writer-in-the-making who isn't afraid to wrestle out loud and in real time.]