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8 Simple Rules for Marrying My Daughter: And Other Reasonable Advice from the Father of the Bride [Not that Anyone is Paying Attention]
Following the stunning success of 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter -- which was adapted into a TV show for ABC -- W. Bruce Cameron returns with an even more hilarious look at fatherhood, capturing the predicament of the forgotten man in the tux at his little girl's wedding. As Cameron explains, modern weddings are much like royal coronations, only more expensive. Aside from the writing of checks, there is not much fathers understand about them. Why can't guests successfully eat, drink, and dance unless the whole event is as carefully choreographed as a Broadway production? With his characteristic wit, Cameron captures the aspects of the wedding that are the most ridiculous to paternal eyes, for • why the wedding needs a theme (this one is "We're all stressed out") • why the wedding has to be photographed as if it will be reviewed by the Warren Commission • why the bouquet must include a species of flower found only at the tip of the Himalayas • why the wedding dress has to strike the right mood (which, judging from everyone's behavior, might best be summed up as "crabby") Throughout it all, however, a father keeps faith that the wedding -- if not the wedding preparation -- will make his daughter a happy woman. Hilarious yet poignant, 8 Simple Rules for Marrying My Daughter is sure to be a comfort to the legions of fathers (and mothers) who will one day have a daughter walking down the aisle.
- GenresHumorNonfiction
304 pages, Hardcover
First published April 8, 2008
2 people are currently reading
197 people want to read
About the author
W. Bruce Cameron
95 books4,480 followersI’ve always loved dogs, which puts me in a unique category along with what, maybe two or three billion people?
What’s not to love about an animal who will sit in your living room all day long, waiting for you to get home, and even if you need to work late and then stop for a stress-relieving beverage on your way home, when you unlock that front door, is absolutely overjoyed to see you? How could you not adore an animal who senses when your day is not going well and tries to cheer you up by dumping a sodden tennis ball in your lap?
I was probably 8 years old, playing in the back yard of our house in Prairie Village, KS, when my dad opened the gate and in rushed a 9-week-old Labrador puppy. I fell to my knees and spread my arms and that dog leaped into them as if we had loved each other our whole lives. It’s a scene that shows up in A Dog’s Purpose—a puppy and a boy meeting each other the very first time, both of them full of unrestrained joy.
We named the dog Cammie. She arrived in my life when I was just beginning to connect some of the dots in my memory to make a picture of who I was, forming my identity as a child. I remember every skinned knee and bicycle ride in the context of Cammie, who was always there for me. And I lost her just as I was starting to leave childhood behind, passing on after I’d spent a year in college. That’s Cammie, the dog of my childhood.
Years later I was riding my bicycle in the mountains outside of Pine, CO. A chance decision to bounce down a dirt road led me past a few scattered ranches and one small house near a creek, set back from the road at least 50 yards. A single “woof” from a dog caught my attention, and I braked and stood in the dry, clear air, regarding the dog who had called out to me.
She was on a chain by the house, and a fence stood between us, so I remained on the road even though I could see that the dog, a black lab mix with a crazily active tail, was clearly friendly. I gazed at her and the dog sat, attentive, staring into my eyes exactly the way my first dog, Cammie, used to look at me, really seeing into me.
And that’s when the thought hit me. What if this wonderful dog was Cammie? What if dogs live over and over again, and always remember us?
I dismissed the thought, waved at the dog, and rode away, but days later the idea came back to me. What if?
I’ve been a writer my whole life, but never have I ever written anything as important as A Dog’s Purpose.
I can’t promise you that A Dog’s Purpose will make you love your dog more—how could it do that? But I’ll tell you what a lot of people have told me: after reading A Dog’s Purpose, you’ll never look at your dog the same way again.
What’s not to love about an animal who will sit in your living room all day long, waiting for you to get home, and even if you need to work late and then stop for a stress-relieving beverage on your way home, when you unlock that front door, is absolutely overjoyed to see you? How could you not adore an animal who senses when your day is not going well and tries to cheer you up by dumping a sodden tennis ball in your lap?
I was probably 8 years old, playing in the back yard of our house in Prairie Village, KS, when my dad opened the gate and in rushed a 9-week-old Labrador puppy. I fell to my knees and spread my arms and that dog leaped into them as if we had loved each other our whole lives. It’s a scene that shows up in A Dog’s Purpose—a puppy and a boy meeting each other the very first time, both of them full of unrestrained joy.
We named the dog Cammie. She arrived in my life when I was just beginning to connect some of the dots in my memory to make a picture of who I was, forming my identity as a child. I remember every skinned knee and bicycle ride in the context of Cammie, who was always there for me. And I lost her just as I was starting to leave childhood behind, passing on after I’d spent a year in college. That’s Cammie, the dog of my childhood.
Years later I was riding my bicycle in the mountains outside of Pine, CO. A chance decision to bounce down a dirt road led me past a few scattered ranches and one small house near a creek, set back from the road at least 50 yards. A single “woof” from a dog caught my attention, and I braked and stood in the dry, clear air, regarding the dog who had called out to me.
She was on a chain by the house, and a fence stood between us, so I remained on the road even though I could see that the dog, a black lab mix with a crazily active tail, was clearly friendly. I gazed at her and the dog sat, attentive, staring into my eyes exactly the way my first dog, Cammie, used to look at me, really seeing into me.
And that’s when the thought hit me. What if this wonderful dog was Cammie? What if dogs live over and over again, and always remember us?
I dismissed the thought, waved at the dog, and rode away, but days later the idea came back to me. What if?
I’ve been a writer my whole life, but never have I ever written anything as important as A Dog’s Purpose.
I can’t promise you that A Dog’s Purpose will make you love your dog more—how could it do that? But I’ll tell you what a lot of people have told me: after reading A Dog’s Purpose, you’ll never look at your dog the same way again.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 22, 2010
Bruce Cameron rivals Dave Barry for comedic writing. Hilarious.
September 19, 2012
Very much enjoyed this one, even more than Eight Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter. I laughed out loud through the whole thing, and I can't wait for my dad to read it- he sure enjoyed the last one! Such an accurate and eye-opening account of planning a wedding, through the father's eyes!
September 21, 2015
5 star for its humor.
September 22, 2019
cuốn sách dành cho những cô gái có những ông bố tuyệt vời. và tôi là nằm trong số đó, ahihi. giời đất ạ, chưa bao giờ thấy nội tâm một ông bố lại hài hước, sâu sắc đến như thế. ông bố này rất yêu 2 cô con gái rượu và quá trình thử thách các chàng rể của ông này thì rất thú vị.
ví dụ ông Bruce này đã định sẽ đe anh con rể đầu tiên bằng cách nhắn nhủ đôi lời yêu thương đại ý như sau: tôi trao con gái đầu lòng mà tôi hết mực yêu thương cho anh, sau này cưới nhau về, nếu con gái tôi chán ghét anh vì nhiều lý do nó có thể ly hôn với anh, còn anh nếu không thể níu kéo nó thì việc duy nhất anh được phép làm là đổi tên và chuyển ra nước ngoài, hãy nhớ lấy. đấy phong thái bố vợ tương lai có oách không cơ chứ?
đọc đi các cô gái,
đọc đi các chàng trai ak,
rất tuyệt đó
ví dụ ông Bruce này đã định sẽ đe anh con rể đầu tiên bằng cách nhắn nhủ đôi lời yêu thương đại ý như sau: tôi trao con gái đầu lòng mà tôi hết mực yêu thương cho anh, sau này cưới nhau về, nếu con gái tôi chán ghét anh vì nhiều lý do nó có thể ly hôn với anh, còn anh nếu không thể níu kéo nó thì việc duy nhất anh được phép làm là đổi tên và chuyển ra nước ngoài, hãy nhớ lấy. đấy phong thái bố vợ tương lai có oách không cơ chứ?
đọc đi các cô gái,
đọc đi các chàng trai ak,
rất tuyệt đó
April 30, 2018
When I read 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, I was pretty convinced I had just encountered what was quite possibly the funniest book ever. As in, the history of anything. Because if you spend the entire time that you're reading erupting into giggles and wiping the "I-just-laughed-so-hard-I-cried" tears from your eyes... it kind of doesn't get any funnier than that, does it?
The answer to that question is: yes, it does get even funnier. With the sequel -- 8 Simple Rules for Marrying My Daughter.
Filled with anecdotal humor that ranges from causing the chuckles to resulting in outright side-splitting fits of loud hyena laughter, this book is the perfect read for anyone who's ever lived or been part of a family.
In other words, it's a great book for everyone to read, as long as you enjoy laughter and humor and happiness and that sort of thing, and don't have a heart of stone. (And even if you do have a heart of stone, this feel-good, universally-relatable book will very likely find and then touch your soft spot.)
Explores the surreal phenomenology of Bridezillas; the cold, hard truth that having daughters who will marry when they are grown is essentially an assurance the credit card companies will temporarily own you someday; how the list of bridal "must-haves" is long and expensive enough to deplete even the deepest of pockets, and the process of planning a wedding is convoluted enough to irritate even the most saintly among us; managing the complicated task of successfully blending families together (or at least preventing homicide during dual-family events that make the impossible demand of asking water and oil to mix) is sometimes harder than it initially appears; and finally, remembering how this whole complicated, beautiful, nerve-racking mess is supposed to be about love and the ties that bind us together. I thoroughly enjoyed every delightful moment.
The answer to that question is: yes, it does get even funnier. With the sequel -- 8 Simple Rules for Marrying My Daughter.
Filled with anecdotal humor that ranges from causing the chuckles to resulting in outright side-splitting fits of loud hyena laughter, this book is the perfect read for anyone who's ever lived or been part of a family.
In other words, it's a great book for everyone to read, as long as you enjoy laughter and humor and happiness and that sort of thing, and don't have a heart of stone. (And even if you do have a heart of stone, this feel-good, universally-relatable book will very likely find and then touch your soft spot.)
Explores the surreal phenomenology of Bridezillas; the cold, hard truth that having daughters who will marry when they are grown is essentially an assurance the credit card companies will temporarily own you someday; how the list of bridal "must-haves" is long and expensive enough to deplete even the deepest of pockets, and the process of planning a wedding is convoluted enough to irritate even the most saintly among us; managing the complicated task of successfully blending families together (or at least preventing homicide during dual-family events that make the impossible demand of asking water and oil to mix) is sometimes harder than it initially appears; and finally, remembering how this whole complicated, beautiful, nerve-racking mess is supposed to be about love and the ties that bind us together. I thoroughly enjoyed every delightful moment.
March 3, 2018
Funny and terrifying.
May 17, 2019
This book was hilarious--couldn't stop laughing! And very pertinent with a daughter getting married this summer!
April 3, 2016
Hmmm. We definitely enjoyed laughing at the prequel to this book. The nostalgia was priceless! Well, there were moments while we were reading this book that I had to stop reading out loud, because I was laughing so hard I was crying. One will have a much better appreciation for the content if you have ever planned a wedding before.
February 20, 2015
A nice sequel to 8 simple rules for dating my teenager daughter, with guaranteed laughs at every page. I have to admit my favorite character was the obnoxious Alicia, a real Bridezilla. Her wedding preparations and after-event comments were hilarious.
April 18, 2015
Hilarious! As always Bruce Cameron is one of the funniest authors I've ever read. Loved every page of it!
January 27, 2014
I love this author...he is very funny and easy to read...I like his style.
January 27, 2016
A dad's perspective on wedding planning. Humorous, but probably more so if you were going thru the same things.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews