Table of Contents

Acknowledgments / xi

Introduction: On Fatherhood, Manliness, and Failure / 3
Jonathan V. Last

Chapter 1: What Do Men Get from Fatherhood? Besides What They Put In … / 17
P. J. O’Rourke

Chapter 2: Newborn Terror: The Moment You Realize That “Bundle of Joy”

Is a Euphemism for Something Very Different / 25
Matthew Continetti

Chapter 3: Siblings: The Best Gift You’ll Ever Give Your Kids / 36
Stephen F. Hayes

Chapter 4: Television and Kids: The Beauty and Pain of TV / 45
James Lileks

Chapter 5: Get Your Kid a Dog: The Moral Case for Pets / 58
Jonah Goldberg

Chapter 6: In Praise of Adventure: How to Fill a Child’s Life with Excitement and Danger (Without Getting Them Killed) / 66
Tucker Carlson

Chapter 7: Catechesis: Teaching Your Kid about God / 73
Larry Miller

Chapter 8: Surviving School: It’s Just as Bad the Second Time Around / 84
Joe Queenan

Chapter 9: Sports: Advice for the Care and Feeding of the Child-Athlete / 94
David Burge (aka Iowahawk)

Chapter 10: The Dark Side: Bad Parenting and the Things We Think, but Do Not Say / 104
Toby Young

Chapter 11: The Talk: The Birds and Bees Aren’t What They Used to Be / 113
Matt Labash

Chapter 12: Dating: Enjoy the Movie and Please Keep the Impregnation to a Minimum / 127
Michael Graham

Chapter 13: College: It’s Not as Bad as You Think; It’s Worse / 137
Christopher Caldwell

Chapter 14: Emerging Adults and Empty Nesters: Just When You Had Fatherhood All Figured Out / 146
Andrew Ferguson

Chapter 15: Love and Marriage: How to Talk to Your Kids about the Most Important Decision They’ll Ever Make / 156
Rob Long

Chapter 16: Thanks, Grandpa: Grandfatherhood and the Spirit of the Age / 166
Joseph Epstein

About the Contributors / 177

About the Author

Jonathan V. Last is a senior writer at the Weekly Standard, a Washington-based political magazine, and author of What to Expect When No One’s Expecting: America’s Coming Demographic Disaster (Encounter Books, 2013) and editor of The Seven Deadly Virtues (Templeton Press, 2014). His writings have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the New York Post, the Claremont Review of Books, First Things, and elsewhere. 

Reviews

“To their kids, all fathers must eventually seem conservative. And old-fashioned, and perhaps even boring. But, politically speaking, is there a uniquely conservative way to be a dad? Weekly Standard senior writer Jonathan V. Last has edited an essay collection by 17 conservative writers, policy wonks and entertainers, all offering advice and reflections on the business of fatherhood.”
— Carlos Lozada, Washington Post (May 7, 2015)

“The book is a compilation of stories about fatherhood and is a refreshing change over all the books out there written from women’s perspective of parenting.” 
—Dr. Helen Smith, PJ Media (March 15, 2015

“Some of the country’s most highly-respected conservative journalists and opinion makers have come together and penned a new book.  While these journalists are best known for their writings on political matters, this new book's subject is far more important.  Parenting.  More specifically, fatherhood.” 
— Dan Joseph, MRC TV (May 7, 2015)

In the Fraternity of Dad, children haze their sires, who become men. Maybe. With one exception, each of the contributors to The Dadly Virtues is a member of the Frat of Dad and has stories about what he learned, what he wishes he’d known, and what he still doesn’t know.

The book is arranged chronologically, from new fathers to grandfathers, but you should start with the final essay, Joseph Epstein’s reflections on being a single father and then helping raise his grandchildren. Amongst the frat, Epstein is the man, a mensch, the incredibly cool alumnus everybody wants to be—or at least write as well as. —Mike Hubbard, Ricochet

“The Dadly Virtues takes a tongue-in-cheek approach to a subject with serious societal ramifications. It arrives at a time when fathers, and men in general, are often portrayed as bumbling and clueless—and, as Last notes in his introduction, ‘only 69 percent of kids (in America) live in a home with two parents.’ It contains some language that’s probably best not shared with younger children.”

“The book covers all stages of fatherhood: expecting and experiencing a first child’s birth; seeing one’s family expand; dealing with children about religion, athletics, college, dating, marriage, and moving out on their own or back home; and eventually becoming a grandfather.”

“The readers who might benefit most from the book are those about to be fathers. Describing it as ‘part instructional guide, part meditation, part war journal,’ Last writes: ‘It is, frankly, the book I wish I’d had back when my first child, Cody, was born.’”
—Alan Wallace, TribLive

“In the best-selling 2014 book The Seven Deadly Virtues, editor Jonathan V. Last makes a case for gratitude as the best of the virtues, surpassing justice, curiosity, prudence, and all others.”
—Marty Wiggins, Tyler Morning Telegraph

“What author Jonathan Last has assembled here is a distillation of what it means to be a father, told through the stories of fathers who happen to be gifted writers, as well as being absolutely hilarious.  Each chapter has its share of funny war stories, but each also has some deep insights into the ups and downs of raising kids. There is timeless wisdom in these comical stories. Plus, this book has an essay by Matt Labash who many claim is the funniest writer in America these days. But don’t be surprised if your eyes get misty at the closing chapter on becoming a good grandfather.” —Sue Randleman, Crossville Chroncile


"In the new book The Dadly Virtues, fathers - from all walks of life and from all stages of family life - share their insights about what being a father means to them. And they do it with a liberal dose of irreverent humor. . . . Every journey needs a journal, and The Dadly Virtues is an excellent collection of journal entries about the fatherhood journey.  The book makes you think, laugh and remember; you can’t ask for much more than that." —Wayne Parker, About.com

“Depending on the author, the humor ranges from quiet dry wit to don’t-drink-your-coffee-while-reading-because-you-will-snort-coffee-through-your-nose funny. P. J. O’Rourke’s chapter on how fatherhood turns men into adults will make you chuckle. Tucker Carlson’s exploration on filling your children’s lives with excitement and danger will make you laugh. So will Toby Young’s on bad parenting, Andrew Ferguson’s on empty nests, Rob Long’s on marriage, and Joseph Epstein’s on being a grandparent.”“The chapters are not just about jokes. Each dispenses wisdom about some aspect of fatherhood. Any dad who had gone through “the Talk” on sex with their children will identify with the embarrassment experienced by Matt Labash. You may not be as into shared experiences in television watching with your children as James Lileks, but he reminds you of some shared experience with your children.”“Fathers who have been through the experiences related by the authors will nod in agreement. Fathers who have yet to go through some aspect of fatherhood outlined will get useful pointers. The Dadly Virtues is out in time for Father’s Day. It is a book with application past Father’s Day. This book is one that will resonate throughout the year.” —Mark Lardas, Galveston County Daily News (June 7, 2015)

“What do you get when you assemble an all-star cast of writers who have collectively experienced the many terrors and triumphs of fatherhood and have lived to write about it? You end up with The Dadly Virtues: Adventures From the Worst Job You’ll Ever Love. As the subtitle suggests, this book is a tongue-in-cheek portrait of the gory glory of fatherhood, containing plenty of side-splitting anecdotes and cultural critique with a dash of philosophical profundity. The editor, Jonathan Last, likens the book to ‘something of a Swiss army knife: part instructional guide, part meditation, part war journal’ (4) … . As a recent inductee to the fraternity of fatherhood, I am personally weary of the many formulaic books I have seen that treat fatherhood as though it’s a science to be conquered. If you’re like me, you’ll agree that the unfiltered and personal nature of The Dadly Virtues is its greatest strength. Last and company portray fatherhood less like a science and more like an art form in which hapless amateurs creep toward mastery through a process of trial and error. With each chapter, you’ll be treated to a strikingly intimate and refreshingly witty take on the real-life rigors and joys of fatherhood… . The Dadly Virtues is a refreshing look at the time-worn institution of fatherhood. After reading it, those of you who aren’t dads will wonder if you should ever become one, while those of us who are will wonder why we didn’t start sooner. In the words of Last, ‘If you aren’t otherwise engaged in some duty that precludes it—say, the priesthood—and you have the opportunity, then you should be a father. There is nothing more vexing, exhausting, noble, or manly. It’s the worst job you’ll ever love’ (15)… . Often side-splitting, sometimes tear-jerking, and always riveting, The Dadly Virtues will resonate with any father or father-to-be.” — Timothy Kleiser, the Gospel Coalition