I read Ghost of My Father by Scott Berkun this past week.
This book isn’t my usual fare. It’s a memoir about the author’s father and their relationship and family life. I’m familiar with the author’s work, but mostly in the realms of tech, design and public speaking, but this book was largely personal, and mostly talking about strangers I had no real interest in. I think the only reason I have a copy at all is because I was on the author’s mailing list and got a review copy of some sort.
I started reading it because I was looking for a new book to pick up, and with the first few pages I was like “Oh, this doesn’t seem like something for me, I probably won’t finish it.” but before I knew it, I had finished 40% of the book in one sitting. I consumed mostly as if it was a work of fiction, about strangers and their relationships. Humans like stories after all, and this is a story about people who are only human.
The author’s relationship with his father was strained at best, and it affected the rest of their family as well. I can’t personally relate to that, as I have a pretty good relationship with my family. The author’s difficult family life provides a window into a kind of human interaction I’m not too familiar with. But I do empathize with how it can be difficult to deal with certain people, and how sometimes the people you need closure from the most will simply have no interest in providing it.
It’s not a long book, it was a quick read for me (less than a week). I probably wouldn’t have sought out such a book on my own, but I’m glad I read it.
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