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I followed up England’s Dreaming with a slim volume by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Twenty Days with Julian and Little Bunny by Papa is an account of Hawthorne’s time spent caring for his five year old son Julian while his wife was away visiting her mother in Boston. The book is taken from Hawthorne’s American Notebooks and is set in July of 1851. This edition is introduced by Paul Auster and I heard about the book after hearing an interview with Auster regarding the book on NPR. Hawthorne struggles with the energetic son who won’t stop talking. They travel to the lake and nearby town each day and their pet rabbit makes a few appearances. Nathaniel struggles with curling the boys hair and refers to Julian as “the old gentleman” throughout. Despite the fact that Hawthorne can’t get any creative work done, we know he loves his son and they end up having a great time together. If you’re a father and have spent any time caring for your children alone you’ll enjoy this book.

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