Fatherless Generation: Redeeming the Story

A Review of Fatherless Generation: Redeeming the Story by John Sowers

Book Details:
* Authors: John Sowers
* Category: Religion / Christian Ministry / General
* Publisher: Zondervan (2010)
* Binding: Paperback
* Page count: 144
* ISBN#: 0310328608

Recommendation:
* Review Date: 10/11/10 by Shaun Tabatt
* Rating: Highly Recommended

Review:
The story of the fatherless generation is unfolding all around us. Some parts of the story
are being told by the children growing up in fatherless homes, while other parts of the
story are being told by the once fatherless children who are now adults. You can hear the
cry of the fatherless in their songs, see it in their movies, and read about it on their blogs.
"Pop culture captures the dying voice of this generation. In it, we hear poets and
prophets crying out for hope in the midst of ruin. Pop culture is a warped mirror of our
lives. And if we can just pause to listen, we hear a song of despair rising from the
ashes.”1 While no two stories are exactly alike, there is a common thread of
abandonment and pain that comes through in each of them. Although the absence of the
father has become commonplace in our culture, it should not be accepted as a normal part
of family life. Just because society deems it as normal, does not take away the rejection
and debilitating pain felt by the fatherless children. The cry of the fatherless generation
needs to be heard and needs to be taken seriously. This new book is giving them a voice.

John Sowers' new book Fatherless Generation: Redeeming the Story is a book that has
been several years in the making. The main catalyst for this book was set in motion back
in January 2008. John posted on his MySpace blog asking people to share their stories
and experiences of growing up without a father. He was surprised to receive thousands
of responses from all over the world. As the number of responses continued to grow, he
realized that he had touched on something that has deeply affected an entire generation.
This book is his response to their stories.

Fatherless Generation is broken up into two parts. The first part of the book connects the
reader with the stories of the fatherless. Over the course of the first six chapters John
shares parts of his own story as well as other stories he has learned from his friends and
acquaintances and also many of the stories that were shared in response to his original
blog post. Through these stories, John illustrates the vast array of emotions experienced
by the fatherless as well as the many personal and social problems (i.e. anger, depression,
promiscuity, drug abuse, low self-esteem, etc.) they experience as well. With no
intervention these same fragile and troubled children will often turn into fragile and

1 John Sowers, Fatherless Generation: Redeeming the Story (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 20.

troubled adults. Is there any hope? John Sowers believes there is and that is what he
presents in the second half of the book.

The remaining eight chapters of the book are a call to action on behalf of the fatherless, a
call to mentorship. John Sowers is the president of The Mentoring Project. Their vision
as an organization "is to equip and support one thousand churches, which will mobilize
ten thousand men and inspire them to become mentors to this fatherless generation of
boys."2 Using a three part process of loving, modeling, and coaching, these mentors are
greatly impacting the lives of fatherless children. God is calling potential mentors to take
seriously the plight of the orphan and to help Him rewrite "the broken story of a
generation.”3 A generation that "is an Esau generation--a generation that has lost its
birthright and is longing for the father's blessing, but the fathers of this generation can no
longer bless them because they are gone. While this is a tragic reality, it is also a great
opportunity to bring healing and reconciliation."4 Will you answer the call?

As an adult who grew up as a part of the fatherless generation, I am sincerely grateful to
John Sowers' work at The Mentoring Project and the awareness he is raising about the
dire need of the fatherless children in this book. This problem is reaching critical mass in
the culture around us and without the church rising up and answering this call, the results
will continue to be more and more disastrous. Should this book ever go into a second
edition, I would encourage the addition of a chapter addressing some of the challenges
faced by the fatherless children who have grown up to become fathers themselves. If this
sounds like you, my strong caution is that you need to put your own house in order,
ensuring that the mentoring and discipling of your own children is well underway before
venturing off to help mentor the fatherless children. It would be a shame to lose your
own kids in the process.

Let me close by saying that Fatherless Generation: Redeeming the Story is a timely
book that is much needed for this specific time in history. I highly recommend this book
for anybody who wants to learn more about the plight of the fatherless. Christian men
and women who have a heart for this younger generation should prayerfully read through
this book and see if God would call them to be a part of His plan for reconciling this great
tragedy.

Author Info:
Dr. John Sowers is president of The Mentoring Project, a movement that exists to inspire
and equip the faith community to provide mentors for the fatherless. He has also been
part of the White House Task Force conversation on Fatherhood and Healthy Families.
John received his Masters of Divinity degree from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
and graduated from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where he wrote his doctoral
thesis on the crisis of fatherlessness. John and his wife, Kari, reside in Portland, Oregon.

2 Ibid. 96.
3 Ibid. 88.
4 Ibid. 118.

Disclaimer:
This book was provided by Zondervan for review. The reviewer was under no obligation
to offer a favorable review.

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