Books

'Lamentations Of The Father', by Ian Frazier

Reviewed by Mary-Jane Donnellan

Contents - Sep 2001 - Buy a copy now Editorial: A letter from the Publisher - Peter Westmore Archbishop Hart's reception at St Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne - Homily - Archbishop Denis Hart News: The Church Around the World The John Paul II Cultural Centre opens in Washington DC - Alex Sidhu Successful Thomas More Centre Winter School in Brisbane - Sidney Rofe Ballarat Thomas More Centre Winter School report Feminism's broad agenda within the Catholic Church - Donna Steichen Commission for Australian Catholic Women: Executive members' feminist views - Richard Egan Why today's secular culture is anti-Catholic - James Hitchcock Kenneth Bruce Dowding, Australian Catholic hero: his brother's tribute - Rev Keith Dowding Letters: Celibacy (letter) - Mrs A.M. Tilburg Letters: More on Marins (letter) - Peter Finlayson Letters: BECs (letter) - Marie Kennedy Letters: Charter (letter) - Rev A.T. Fitzpatrick Letters: Adelaide protest (letter) - Pauline Pascoe Letters: Feminists (letter) - Margaret Jones Letters: Formidable mind (letter) - Mrs V. Mulligan Letters: Aquinas (letter) - Michael Casanova Letters: Fatima Family Apostolate (letter) - Margaret Grace Letters: Church teachings (letter) - Gerry Keane Letters: Mind of the Church (letter) - Mrs Carol V. Phillips Letters: God's word (letter) - Vic Hall Books: 'The Book of Marriage', edited by Dana Mack and David Blankenhorn - Bill Muehlenberg (reviewer) Books: 'The Holocaust, Never To Be Forgotten', Avery Dulles SJ, Rabbi Leon Klenicki - Anthony Cappello (reviewer) Books: 'Padre Pio: In My Own Words', ed. Anthony F. Chiffolo - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Books: 'Teens and Relationships', 'Teen Life and Christ', by Jerry Shepherd - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Books: 'Lamentations Of The Father', by Ian Frazier - Mary-Jane Donnellan (reviewer) Reflection: Saint Catherine of Siena: how to receive the Eucharist more worthily - Sr Mary Jeremiah OP

Lamentations Of The Father
by Ian Frazier
(Westminster John Knox Press, 2000, hardcover, 27pp, $26.95. Available from AD Books)

Lamentations of the Father is a humorous and colourfully illustrated book, which offers a delightful yet insightful perspective on parenting. Adapting the language of Deuteronomy, tongue-in-cheek, it sets out a father's code of conduct for young children.

Its author, Ian Frazier, has been a regular contributor to Harper's, The New Yorker and The Atlantic Monthly, is the author of numerous books and winner of the Thurber prize for Humour. The illustrator of Lamentations of the Father is Bruce Zick, who has been an artist and designer for such films as The Lion King, The Prince of Egypt and Beauty and the Beast.

This talented duo tackles a range of domestic headache situations involving the raising of young children. Readers who have experienced these testing times will find their memories jogged; those currently coping with a young family will at least see the funny side of often difficult situations.

Among the topics are "Laws When at Table", "Laws Pertaining to Dessert", "On Screaming", "Concerning Face and Hands" and "Various Other Laws, Statutes and Ordinances."

The following example typifies the delights to be found in Lamentations of the Father: "For we judge between the plate that is unclean and the plate that is clean, saying first, if the plate is clean, then you shall have dessert. But of the unclean plate, the laws are these: If you have eaten most of your meat, and two bites of your peas with each bite consisting of not less than three peas each, or in total six peas, eaten where I can see, and you have also eaten enough of your potatoes to fill two forks, both forkfuls eaten where I can see, then you shall have dessert ..."

Mary-Jane Donnellan is a Melbourne Catholic writer.

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 14 No 8 (September 2001), p. 17