THE COUNCIL OF DADS is the book Bruce Feiler never expected to write. For years, he has captivated readers with his smart, witty, insightful storytelling, which chronicles his heart-stopping adventures around the world in such bestsellers as Walking the Bible, Abraham, and America’s Prophet.

But in 2008, Feiler, the father of two young girls, learned he had a life-threatening tumor in his left femur. Confronting the possibility that he may not be around to help his daughters grow up, he reached out to six men from all passages in his life and asked them to be present through the passages in his daughters’ lives. And he called this group of men “The Council of Dads.”

“I believe my daughters will have plenty of opportunities,” he wrote to these men. “They’ll have loving families. They’ll have welcoming homes. They’ll have each other. But they may not have me. They may not have their dad. Will you help be their dad?”
On May 12, one of the Council of Dads, Dr. Ben Edwards will be in attendance at Trinity United Methodist Church for a heartwarming introduction of Mr. Feiler.

THE COUNCIL OF DADS is the uplifting story of what happened next. Feiler introduces us to the extraordinary, far-flung men in his Council and captures the life lesson he wants each of them to convey to his daughters—how to see, how to travel, how to question, how to dream. And he captures in beautiful, wrenching prose the harrowing journey of his “Lost Year” fighting cancer and trying to salvage his leg. With unflinching candor, Feiler details not only the physical effects of the disease and treatment, but also the toll it took on his family. But along the way, the wisdom and strength he gathers from his Council, coupled with the beauty and humor he discovers in his own family, transforms his “Lost Year” into a “Jubilee Year” of reconnection and renewal. The result is an extraordinary tribute to friendship, and a sage collection of advice for how to cultivate our dreams.

THE COUNCIL OF DADS is a deeply hopeful book, a story of enduring love between a husband and wife and between a father and his daughters. But most of all it’s a celebration of friendship and a testament to the profound power of human connections.

BRUCE FEILER is the New York Times bestselling author of nine books, including Walking the Bible, Abraham and America’s Prophet. He has traveled to more than sixty countries on five continents and is the writer-presenter of the PBS miniseries, Walking the Bible. With his books, Bruce Feiler has moved readers to take a fresh look at history and far-flung places of the world. Now, with THE COUNCIL OF DADS, Feiler inspires us to cultivate a deeper appreciation of the people closest to us and revitalize the most intimate bonds in our lives. A native of Savannah, Georgia, he lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Linda Rottenberg, and their twin daughters, Tybee and Eden.

For more information visit www.savannahbookfestival.org