Faith of My Fathers
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| Faith of My Fathers | |
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| Author | John McCain with Mark Salter |
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| Language | English |
| Publisher | Random House |
| Publication date | August, 1999 |
| Media type | hardcover |
| Pages | 349 |
| ISBN | 0-375-50191-6 |
| Followed by | Worth the Fighting For |
Faith of My Fathers is a 1999 best selling non-fiction book by United States Senator John McCain with Mark Salter. Published by Random House, it is part autobiography, part family memoir. It traces the story of McCain's life growing up, during his time in the United States Naval Academy, and his military service as a naval aviator before and during the Vietnam War. His story is interwoven with those of his father John S. "Jack" McCain, Jr. and his grandfather John S. "Slew" McCain, Sr., both four-star admirals in the Navy.
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[edit] History
McCain had rarely discussed his military experiences until the 1995 publication of Robert Timberg's The Nightingale's Song.[1] After that book found critical praise, Timberg's literary agent tried to persuade McCain to write his own memoir on the subject; he was reluctant until she suggested he fold in the stories of his father and grandfather as well.[1]
Publisher Random House paid McCain $500,000 for a two-book advance.[2] Half went to McCain (which he donated to charity) and half to Salter, McCain's longtime legislative aide.[2] The book's themes were heavily influenced by McCain's literary tastes, such as Ernest Hemingway's For Whom the Bell Tolls, and its tone by Salter's gloomy view of human nature.[1]
The book was released in late August 1999; during September, McCain went on a 15-city book tour, that dovetailed with campaign stops his 2000 presidential campaign that would be formally announced later in the month.[2]
The book was a commercial success, spending 24 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller list between September 1999 and March 2000, with a peak position of number two,[3] and selling over 500,000 copies.[1] Reviews of the book were almost all positive.[2] Royalties from the book were donated to charity.[4]
The success of the book tour and the book's high number of sales led to it becoming a central part of the themes of McCain's 2000 presidential campaign, and represented a fundamental change in McCain now using his Vietnam and prisoner experiences as a framing device for the narrative of his life.[1]
The memoir was made into the 2005 television film Faith of My Fathers. McCain also wrote a sequel memoir, 2002's Worth the Fighting For.
[edit] Synopsis
"Slew" McCain commanded the Aircraft Carriers of Task Force 38 in the Pacific in late 1944 and 1945, ultimately having 15 carriers and 8 battleships, plus their escorts, under his control for operations against Japan in July 1945. "Jack" McCain was a submariner in the US Navy during the Pacific War, and rose to Four Star Rank when John McCain was a POW in Hanoi. McCain writes forthrightly of his rebellious and misspent youth, and his conflicts about following in his forefathers' steps.
The centerpiece of Faith of My Fathers is a lengthy account of McCain's five and half years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnamese camps, of the torturing and suffering he and his fellow prisoners endured, and the various kinds of faith that enabled him to carry on through the ordeal. The book concludes with the release from captivity of him and the other POWs in 1973.
The following passage explains the book's title:
Glory belongs to the act of being constant to something greater than yourself, to a cause, to your principles. No misfortune, no injury, no humiliation can destroy it. This is the faith that my commanders affirmed, that my brothers-in-arms encouraged my allegiance to… It was my father and grandfather's faith. A filthy, broken man, all I had left of my dignity was the faith of my fathers. It was enough".
[edit] See also
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[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e Kirkpatrick, David D. (2008-10-12). "Writing Memoir, McCain Found a Narrative for Life". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/13/us/politics/13mccain.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-13.
- ^ a b c d Alexander, Paul (2002). Man of the People: The Life of John McCain. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-22829-X. pp. 194–195.
- ^ "Faith of My Fathers (1999)". Books and Authors. http://booksandauthors.wiseto.com/bna/about_the_book/GALE%7CM1300097727. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ Sharon Theimer (2008-04-03). "Beer heiress could be next first lady". Associated Press for MSNBC.com. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23930780/. Retrieved on 2008-04-29.
