FINDING MY FATHER:
How the Gospel Heals the Pain of
Fatherlessness
By Blair Linne (with Shai Linne)
The Good Book Company. 160 pages. £8.99
ISBN 978 1 784 986 469
This moving book begins with the poignant words: ‘The section on my birth certificate reserved for my father’s name is blank.’
Blair Linne is a Spoken Word Poet from the United States, who uses her skill with words to tell her own story of fatherlessness. This is a stirring account, well told.
Many stories of fatherlessness are told by men, so it is it interesting to get a woman’s perspective on the topic.
There are four things I found particularly helpful in reading this book:
First, I value the way that the author is honest about the many heartaches of not having a father-figure in her life most of the time. It is instructive to read about the different coping strategies that can turn into the idolatry of attention seeking.
Secondly, I valued how as a mature Christian woman the author is able to process her experience through her growing appreciation of the fatherly love of God that is revealed in the gospel. This is a nuanced Biblical biography that highlights the pressure points of fatherlessness, but also directs the reader to the restorative power and hope of the gospel.
Thirdly, I welcome the honesty that reminds the reader that nothing before eternity fully heals the wounds of fatherlessness.
Fourthly, the book is enhanced by the chapter in which the author’s husband, the Hip Hop artist, Shai Linne, who has a similar domestic background, tells his story. He describes the process of being helped by his experience of the Fatherhood of God, the father-figures he had encountered in his Christian life, and his own experience of becoming a father.
Read this book if you want to gain an insight into the world of a fatherless person.
Read this book if, for whatever reason, you are fatherless: you will feel understood and you will see the path to hope.
