April Dellinger
- Charlotte Literature Examiner
Bruce Brodowski's My Father My Son Explores the Heart of the Emotional Orphan·                      November 23rd, 20102:30 am ET
No one is exempt from momentary feelings of loneliness, abandonment, emptiness, and misdirection in life, but in his writings Bruce Brodowski focuses on the margin of people who are burdened with these feelings at the soul level. Brodowski, whose familiarity with emotional fatherlessness arose after his own father was killed in World War II, writes about people living with "orphan hearts" in his second book My Father My Son.  In Brodowski's profoundly personal work, he expresses the potentially precious, but commonly detrimental effect that that father/child relationship can have on a person, even into adulthood.  Although the directed and assumed audience is one with its roots in Christianity, My Father My Son would be an appropriate read for any demographic. Because it contains personal reflections and viewpoints from War World War II orphans, as well as other historically relevant material, baby boomers, history buffs, and those simply interested in exploring psychological, sociological, and philosophical aspects of human life will take interest in and benefit from reading My Father My Son. Brodowski poses challenging questions and explores the problem of the orphan heart as he exposes the pains and frustrations that are unique to this group. Personal accounts from those who have been literally orphaned and those who have dealt with emotional abandonment add to the depth and sincerity of this book, but Brodowski does not simply leave the reader with a problem and no solution. Reasonable and challenging information is presented to readers to help them recognize signs of the orphan heart mindset and apply ways to combat it and set themselves on the path to healing. John 14:18, also known as The Father's Blessing, is referenced in both of Brodowski's books and sums up the thesis of his writing; it reads, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." My Father My Son is a touching, gently straightforward book that will impact and inspire its readers to explore the inner workings of their hearts in order to find healing and fulfillment.  Â