Father Figures

The shape of the family tree has changed irrevocably in recent decades, and there is hardly such a thing as a 'typical dad' anymore (though dad jokes, like cockroaches, never seem to die). From the grim archetype of the emotionally distant father, to the bumbling man-child who's only a pair of underpants away from being an ape and the sensitive-new-age man with a pram, there has never been more freedom for men to choose what sort of dad they want to be. Or, for that matter, so many opportunities to stuff it up!CONTRIBUTORS INCLUDE: Anson Cameron Malcolm Knox William McInnes Tony Birch Barry Dickins Paddy O'Reilly Ben Pobjie Nick Place Kate Legge Gideon Haigh Angela Pippos Richard Hinds Sami Shah Mischa Merz Tony Wilson James Button Dominic Knight Benjamin Law Kerryn Phelps Tracey SpicerAbout the AuthorPaul Connolly is a freelance journalist whose work has featured in such publications as The Monthly and Guardian Australia. Paul is also an author, a university tutor, and a soccer coach of little renown. At home, if you ask him, he’s a better than average partner and father of two. If he’s occasionally grumpy he feels he has good cause. He almost always remembers to put the bins out.