Isabel Allende Quotes

Of course there's some things that I would have liked to have... none of my friends growing up had their father in the house. None of 'em. We had uncles and stuff like that, but nobody had a father in the house, none of my friends.

I didn't have a father figure in the house.

If I could change anything, I would definitely have had a father around. My father. I would definitely say it affected me deeply as a young man, coming up. Who doesn't want a father? Those are the beginnings, and those are what can dictate the roads you choose in life, and choosing them well.

I know that my dad not being in my life made a huge impact on me.

A lot of people don't even know that about me, I grew up without a father.

I grew up without a father figure.

My mum left my dad when I was six months old, so I don't know him at all. I had no male figures in my life, really. I had my godfather, but he's more like a grandfather, so I was quite sheltered. I've never tried to find my father.

People say you don't need a father to be successful. I take offense to that.

I never had a father figure so I never missed it.

My childhood was defined by my father's absence. His presence looms so large. Up until the age of 18, he was a superstar for me.

My father was out of my life when I was pretty young - when I was 7 years old, he was gone. I didn't see him for the rest of my childhood.

I didn't have a dad coming up. I didn't have someone to be scared of.

I don't know what it's like to have a typical father figure. He's not the dad who's going to take me to the beach and go swimming, but he's such a motivational person.

Everybody's got a father. Even if he's not the nicest guy in the world.

I never knew my father. He was never married to my mother; he was never a part of my life. It was just my mom, my brother and me.

Being a child that grew up with a single mom back in the '70s, Father's Day to me was always a very uncomfortable time. At school, we would make Father's Day cards for our dads, and I usually mailed one to my dad, and he hardly ever responded.

My life has always been with my dad. Since I can remember, I was raised by my father my entire life. So he's kind of been that mom and father figure - always.

Having robbed children of any sense that their Father is in Heaven and that they are His creation, we then launched an experiment in raising them without earthly fathers too. Having neither a Father in heaven or a father in the home, many young men make gangs their families.

The father figure doesn't impress me. I have a very friendly relationship with my father, but that wasn't always the case. My mother had custody, and I only saw him every other weekend. I never knew him well enough for him to inspire me.

I never suffered from the absence of a father. On the contrary, as a child I was more inclined to see men as a disturbing factor. It made things difficult for me when I started working as a director.

So many of our young women today, they're growing up without a father, but they're still thirsty for that and desiring positive male love.

One way of reading my life is that I have been in constant search for a father.

Almost 24 million children - one in three - are likely growing up without their father involved in their lives.

Think about one of the most powerful influences on a young child's life - the absence of a father figure. Look back on recent presidents, and you'll find an absent, or weak, or failed father in the lives of Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.

I want to be able to be a father to my kids, where I've never seen my father, but my kids can see me whenever they want, so that was broken.