Special for Father’s Day! The whole family will enjoy this evening’s exploration of fatherhood, from the invention of this fundamental institution in the Bronze Age through its transformation to the present day. Augustine Sedgewick’s bold and original work of history provides a collective portrait of emblematic fathers who have helped to define how the world should be ruled and what it means to be a man.

Fatherhood is one of the most meaningful aspects of human culture. For centuries, it has defined human experiences and provided the foundation of patriarchy. In this new book, the celebrated historian Augustine Sedgewick explains how fatherhood as a facet of parenting emerged and in the ways in which it has changed over time. He explores its history through such emblematic fathers as Aristotle, Saint Augustine, Henry VIII, Thomas Jefferson, and Charles Darwin. Fatherhood transforms our understanding of this fundamental idea, experience, and institution. Sedgewick’s book and this enlightening broadcast discussion of family roles and history make a wonderful gift for your family—especially for your father or in honor of him and fatherhood.

Augustine Sedgewick is the author of Coffeeland, winner of the 2022 Cherasco International Prize and a New York Times Editors’ Choice selection. He earned his doctorate at Harvard University, and his research on the global history of capitalism, work, food, and family has received fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies, the American Antiquarian Society, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, among others. Originally from Maine, Sedgewick lives in New York City with his son.

Michele Filgate is the editor of What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About and What My Father and I Don’t Talk About. Her writing has appeared in Longreads, Poets & Writers, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Paris Review Daily, Tin House, Gulf Coast, Oprah Daily, and many other publications. She received her MFA in Fiction from NYU, where she was the recipient of the Stein Fellowship.