Love You, Daddy Boy

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY AUG 21, 2006

Edited by the wife of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, this compilation features over 60 short laudatory articles by women mostly American about their fathers. Frist describes how her own father, who signed his letters "Love U, Daddy Boy," was of great assistance in 1978 when she was attacked by a man who got into her hotel room. Especially interesting is a piece by Barbara Hoffa Crancer, daughter of Teamster Leader Jimmy Hoffa, whose 1975 disappearance was never solved; Crancer recalls a man with enormous empathy for those in need. Mary Higgins Clark's father was an Irish immigrant who worked hard in his bar and grill, but despite his strong desire to visit his homeland, he was never able to spare the time before his death of a heart attack when his daughter was 11. Few of the writers who also include Condoleezza Rice, Margaret Thatcher and Rosanne Cash focus on any difficulties with their fathers in this generally syrupy collection. One exception is Hillary Rodham Clinton, who notes that, when she was growing up, she had political disagreements with her Republican father despite their close bond. B&w photos.