Father’s Day in Australia – which, unlike in many other countries, is celebrated in September – is made for book-loving fathers. It comes at the start of an annual publishing peak, when a slew of enticing titles are released in the lead-up to the holiday season. Try gifting some of these goodies to make Father’s Day extra happy for the father or grandfather in your life:
Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man by Mary L. Trump
Mary Trump’s book about her uncle Donald is THE highest profile new book at the moment. It is so damning that President Trump has tried – and failed – to block publication of the book in a lawsuit. Too Much and Never Enough is full of gasp-worthy stories that reveal the meanness, greed, and emotional dysfunction displayed by the entire Trump Clan. Ever the clinical psychologist, Mary Trump also turns her professional eye on her uncle, identifying signs of sociopathy and narcissistic personality disorder. Too Much and Never Enough is deeply cringeworthy, yet strangely compelling – fathers who like to be on top of the latest happenings will find it hard to resist its sensationalist delights.
Roughy by Jarryd Roughead
This one is for all of the Dads who are sports fans…and those who enjoy a great autobiography. Cancer doesn’t discriminate. When things were at their worst for Jarryd Roughead, his four premierships, two All-Australian gongs and a Coleman Medal counted for nothing. Being that rare footballer who was as loved by opposition fans as his own was no help either. As he spent his days vomiting or curled up with the cat, and his nights in a pool of sweat, fully clothed yet freezing, rolling out of bed every couple of hours to dunk his feet in cold water to douse the feeling that they were on fire, all that mattered was that he didn’t stop believing. Belief is one of those intangibles that puts great athletes above the pack. But this was no game. Roughy is the story of a footballer who lived the dream, the country boy who not only became an AFL star, but was a key player in a Hawthorn team that will be remembered as one of the greats of any era. When in 2015 a spot on his bottom lip was diagnosed as melanoma, we could relate to him all the more. When it returned as spots on his lungs the next year, the gravity we routinely attach to football’s wins and losses seemed ridiculous. In Roughy, you’ll discover the resilience that got him through horrendous immunotherapy and helped him to not only play AFL again, but as Hawthorn captain.
The World’s Worst Parents by David Walliams
A gift of David Walliams’ latest book is an invitation to share it with your favourite young people. After exposing the naughty and terrible deeds of children and then teachers, now misbehaving parents are coming under David Walliams’ microscope. The World’s Worst Parents are ten tales that tell of the world’s most spectacularly silly mums and deliriously daft dads. Fizzing with fun, with all the hallmarks of David’s flamboyant imagination and surreal humour combined with his genius for character, these hilarious stories are guaranteed to bring on the giggles. Another superb partnership between David Walliams and illustrator Tony Ross, whose art complements the stories perfectly.
The Order by Daniel Silva
Under Daniel Silva’s masterly plotting, Israeli operative and art restorer Gabriel Allon has been through a lot. In The Order, the 20th book about Gabriel, he is tasked with the secret investigation of the death of his old friend, Pope Paul VII. To unravel this mystery, Gabriel must find the link between the Pope’s death, a missing letter written by the Pope to Gabriel, right-wing extremism, and a rumoured lost Gospel. With its mix of art, religion, current affairs and exotic locations, The Order might just be the new Da Vinci Code. Perfect for Fathers who love suspenseful thrillers.
White Fragility: Why it’s so Hard for White People to Talk about Racism by Robin Di Angelo
For fathers who like to understand the big issues – White Fragility is one of the most in-demand books during the current debate on institutional racism. Robin DiAngelo is a sociologist who works in diversity training; here, she initiates uncomfortable discussions about how white people are complicit in society’s institutional racism – intentionally or otherwise. She coined the term “white fragility” to describe the disbelieving defensiveness that white people exhibit when they are challenged about race, and particularly when they feel implicated in white supremacy – with profound implications particularly for people who consider themselves liberal or progressive. Provocative and challenging, White Fragility is a must-read for anyone trying to understand racism and race relations.
How to be an Anti Racist by Ibram X Kendi
Like White Fragility, How to be an Anti-Racist is an unsettling, but important, read that helps us navigate the complex debates around racism. This memoir by Ibram X. Kendi charts his own journey from internalised anti-black racism, to anti-white racism, and finally, antiracism. He proposes a provocatively simple binary – an idea, action or policy is either racist – that is, contributing to a history that regards and treats different races as inherently unequal – or it is antiracist, because it is trying to dismantle that history. There is nothing in-between – especially not the popular self-declaration of “not racist”. Kendi methodically examines racism through numerous lenses, such as power, biology, ethnicity, body, culture and gender, as well as offer guidance on how to dismantle racism. How to be an Anti-racist is an honest and compelling memoir as well as a powerful textbook for change.