In a sequel to the celebrated collection of stories Nobody's Mother comes an honest and poignant collection of essays from men who have forgone fatherhood.

Statistics Canada data show that seven per cent of women and eight per cent of men intend to remain childless. Nobody's Father gives readers fresh, honest insights into that male eight per cent. Ranging in age from young manhood to late middle age, some gay and some straight, and making their homes across North America, the contributors explore the issues of what it means to live a life without children. While some writers admit they are haunted by feelings of failure to live up to their own fathers' expectations and to carry on the family name, others admit to knowing from an early age that parenthood was not for them and are content with the alternative lives they lead.

Bruce Gillespie is an award-winning Canadian writer and editor and an assistant professor in the journalism program at Wilfrid Laurier University's Brantford campus. He has worked for Canadian Business and MoneySense, and his writing has appeared in a number of magazines and newspapers, including Canadian Geographic, Chatelaine, Financial Post Business Magazine, Applied Arts, Quill & Quire, and the National Post. He has received four honourable mentions at the National Magazine Awards and a Best Consumer Feature in the Rogers Media Best Of Awards in 2001. Bruce is the editor of A Family by Any Other Name: Exploring Queer Relationships and was co-editor of the two anthologies Somebody's Child: Stories About Adoption and Nobody's Father: Life Without Kids. He was recently appointed editor-in-chief of J-Source.ca, a hub for news, information, and commentary about Canadian journalism. Visit Bruce online at brucegillespie.com and follow him on Twitter at @bgillesp.

Bruce Gillespie's profile page

Lynne Van Luven is an associate professor in the Department of Writing at the University of Victoria, where she teaches journalism and creative non-fiction. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications across Canada. She has edited four previous anthologies, including Nobody's Mother: Life Without Kids, Nobody's Father: Life Without Kids, and Somebody's Child: Stories About Adoption. Lynne lives in Victoria, BC.

Please visit finearts.uvic.ca/lynnevanluven.

Lynne Van Luven's profile page

The essays explore a territory worth knowing, a region that relatively few of us frequent. —Monday Magazine

A well-written meditation on not having children.—The Malahat Review