Worlds of Care: The Emotional Lives of Fathers Caring for Children with Disabilities

Anthropologist Jackson sheds light on the lives of “men caring for children with major cognitive and physical disabilities” in his vulnerable and edifying debut. Studies of fatherhood are uncommon, he writes, and “ones that deal with fathers as caregivers even less so.” Through a mix of anecdote, reported stories, and research, Jackson examines such ideas as how a child’s diagnosis leaves parents without a framework for moving forward, how hands-on caregiving can result in emotionally strong relationships, how the contemporary culture of masculinity tends to exclude men from child-rearing, and how societal shaming can erase the humanity of a disabled child. Jackson also movingly traces his experience with his son’s disability, and, indeed, the work’s strength is in the author’s ability to lay bare moving narratives that are seldom told about disability and fatherhood. (Though when he veers into the philosophical, which he often does, the transition can be jarring and the writing can be jargon-heavy.) Heavier on observations than strict guidance, this study is deeply insightful: “Perhaps one of the greatest challenges for parents is learning how to comfortably inhabit this space between things... between their meaning-rich perceptions of their children and the devaluating gaze of the other,” he muses. Parents—especially fathers—caring for disabled children will find Jackson’s survey moving. (Apr.)