VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It’s your chance to get some fatherly advice from some famous Canadian dads. It’s all in the new book, Forty Fathers: Men Talk About Parenting.

Victoria-based author Tessa Lloyd has more than 30 years experience as a counselor working with children and families.

She says the book was inspired, in part, by the difficult relationship she had with her own dad.

“I had a rather rough childhood with a father who was detached and angry and family life for me was incredibly tense,” she recalls.

Then, when her two sons-in-law were about to become dads, she wanted to give them a book that would inspire them, so she decided to come up with her own resource.

“It’s really personal stories that I think that they would most connect with and personal stories from men that they know and respect would be well received, was my impression,” she says.

LISTEN: Forty Fathers

Indeed, there are famous Canadian dads of every stripe in Forty Fathers: including Trevor Linden, Rick Hansen, and Vikram Vij, as well as Justin Trudeau, and the Mulroney brothers, Ben and Mark.

Lloyd says choosing who made the cut was a lot like putting together a choir.

“Okay, I’ve got lots in the tenor section, I need a bit more of the baritone section. I didn’t know initially how it would all turn out. It was just one father at a time.”

She admits there are few dads she couldn’t get and some who backed out at the last minute.

“It’s just not everyone’s cup of tea,” she says. “There were a number of men that I would have dearly loved to include who just weren’t willing.”

Today on @NEWS1130: I speak with counselor @Lloydtessarose, author of "Forty Fathers: Men Talk About Parenting," They include Justin Trudeau, Trevor Linden, and Rick Hansen. The Vancouver launch is Thursday at the Terminal City Club. @DMPublishers @zgcomms #1130bookshelf pic.twitter.com/zpuRyl1mAZ

— John Ackermann (@jackermann) November 24, 2019

When it comes to Canadian dads, they don’t get much more famous than Justin Trudeau.

Lloyd says the Prime Minister learned some important lessons from his dad about work-life balance.

“Weekday evenings, the Prime Minister of Canada was not available because he was swimming, reading, and doing homework with his children,” she explains.

Lloyd also found Trudeau, like many of the dads in the book, has learned parenting must a partnership.

“You have to discuss roles and responsibilities and not split everything along narrow, gender lines.”

She hopes if there is one takeaway from the book, it’s this: “I would just hope that this book will encourage people to think about their parenting more consciously.”

Forty Fathers:  Men Talk About Parenting is available from Douglas and McIntyre.

The Vancouver book launch is set for November 28 at The Terminal City Club.