A Heartwarming, Emotional, Humorous Reading Experience,
March 18, 2008 by Richard R. Blake (San Leandro, CA)
Karen Arlettaz Zemek has written a tribute to her father Harry Arlettaz in her book "My Funny Dad, Harry." The book is filled with short funny stories about life with Harry, his family, and his cats. Harry was recognized as a man of integrity, discipline, a wonderful craftsman, and his dedication to serving the Lord by serving others.
Cat lovers will enjoy the tenderness, care, and concern of a generous man willing to sacrifice for a needy animal. Karen gives detailed descriptions and the antics of Harry's cats: Blackie, Bootsie, and Diamond Jim, Razzle "Frazzle Dazzle, Fluff, Puff, Timi, Striper, Softie, and Sweet Thing to name only a few. Harry built a "Kitty Motel" for the stray cats in the neighborhood. He included windows and a swinging door for the cat's convenience.
As Harry grew older he maintained a spirit of independence. Even as he recognized his limitations he never complained but downplayed his own physical inabilities rather than allowing himself to impose on others.
Karen has captured the reality of the physical impairments of growing old. She has communicated a sense of the humorous even in the hard situations.
I appreciated Karen's dedication to her father and her devotion and sacrifice in caring for him. Throughout the telling of Harry's story Karen was never "preachy" but wove a tapestry ribbon of God's love and grace throughout the narrative. In an appendix she has included a clear cut invitation to pursue a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as savior.
I smiled as I read of Harry's years of accumulation of tools, magazines, and every conceivable collectible. I was challenged to take a look at the clutter in my life, the unfinished projects, sentimental "stuff", and begin sorting out my own priorities.
"My Funny Dad, Harry" is a delightful memoir of a tender hearted man dedicated to serving others. Well written, humorous, and heartwarming.
About my dad.
The video below shows some of my dad's cats which I wrote about in "My Funny Dad, Harry."
For a little introduction to the cats, go to my blog on http://www.zemeks.blogspot.com. You can read an excerpt from the book about Striper on my pnn page listed as my official website above.
Very Highly Recommended, Reviewed by Liana Metal http://LianaMetal.tripod.com
Karen Arlettaz Zemek, a secretary at a law firm, grew up with two foster sisters and one foster brother. She lives with her husband, Gerard, in Ohio . She wrote this book in memory of her father, Harry.
This book is the affectionate account of a loving daughter to her precious father. The author uses all her memories to construct the image of her father, Harry, and his funny moments of his lifetime. Karen tries to describe each moment she shared with her dad with much care and detail so as the reader to be able to identify with her and see her dad through her eyes. Karen’s perspective shows how much she loved her father and mother as well as her foster sisters and brother, who all formed a loving family.
The incidents she describes indicate how Harry used to think and live, and are an important sign of his generation that lived before technology spread out. Harry had a unique personality that will make readers love him, and the details of his life Karen describes so well, enhance the image of a good father who cares about his family.
The language is simple and clear, quite direct and enjoyable for everyone to read. The book is full of black and white pictures that show Harry and his pets, and his other possessions around his house. The author addresses issues of old age and death that we all face at some point in our life. This story shows how tight some family bonds can be. It is certainly a nice book, quite unusual from the other memoir books I have read. I enjoyed Harry’s relationship with his cats and his determination to live on his own.
MY FUNNY DAD, HARRY
FOREWORD
I have so many funny memories of things my dad, Harrington Arlettaz (Harry), did that I decided to write this book in his memory as a tribute to him. This book is not only about my dad, but also about me, life and aging and how we deal with it. I kept a day-by-day journal since the end of 1999 from which I picked out the funny things that happened and formed this book as well as thinking back and drawing from my memories. I never thought I would write a book until he died. It was a way for me to handle my grief and helped me to really think about what a special man he was. Also, I couldn’t sleep through the night because thoughts about things he did kept coming in my head and I thought how easy it would be to write them down and put them in a book. Even the title came to me so I started writing and this book became a reality. I hope it brings a smile to your face, maybe gives you some pointers and even makes you laugh out loud.
My dad lived from December 9, 1917 to February 16, 2007. He was around before TV and lived to see the digital age of high tech. He even got to use a computer! He truly was a Godly, wonderful husband and father. I hope you enjoy the humorous side I am sharing with you in this book as well as some of the tender moments we shared. Everything in here really did happen. He was an amazing man, absolutely one of a kind! Perhaps you too will learn some things from him just as I have.
Having grown up through the Depression, Harry was a king of pack rats. He saved EVERYTHING, but in an organized way. It just took me awhile to figure out his system. If something broke, he would save it because he planned to fix it. For example, Dad was very excited about getting a new microwave and so proud of himself for researching it out and getting exactly the right one. The next day, Gerard and I took groceries to dad and got him to move the old microwave off the counter at least. I thought maybe he’d let Gerard put it by the front door so it would be easy to take out when “the weather broke.” But no, he told us to leave it in the dining room for now. I told Gerard “I’m not saying anymore about it, but you watch, he won’t throw it away.” I was right, he never did!
He just ran out of space and didn’t get to everything he wanted to do; consequently, his house was full of clutter when he died. This motivated me to learn how to sell items on eBay, but I had to try things out first to make sure they worked.
Harry truly exemplified the man described in Micah 6:8: “He hath shewed thee, O man what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (KJV)
My dad was a very quiet and private person. That’s why it is so ironic that I am sharing him with you through this book. My mom’s side of the family were big and loud and my dad was quite the opposite. Mom was always the one who liked to read and talked about writing a book some day.
Harry’s priorities were as follows:
Trust in the Lord and Help Others
Be Warm and Comfortable
Family
Working with his hands (like all the time)
Learning
Cats and other Animals
Notice that sports, appearance, cleaning and what others think don’t even make the list. These things were totally unimportant to him which made him the unique, one-of-a-kind very funny person.
When he hit “old age” he always had to be warm. He wore a jacket vest inside the house all winter long even though the thermometers registered close to 80 degrees. (Yes, plural, because he had at least one hanging in each room, many of which were still in the plastic).
(notice the termometer hanging on the wall still in the plastic!)
As you read this book, you will get to know my Funny Dad through my eyes as well as how our relationship grew. If you are a caregiver to an older person, I’m sure you will identify with many of the events I share in this book and realize other people have some of the same problems as you. Hopefully, you will even learn some things and get some ideas from him just like I have.
Karen Arlettaz Zemek
Purchase it from:
www.amazon.com or http://www.outskirtspress.com/myfunnydadharry or www.barnesandnoble.com or email me at myfunnydadharry@sbcglobal.net to request an autographed copy and get my address so you can send me a check ($15 incl. tax and postage).
