Fathers and their sons provide fertile ground for a writer who is willing to look closely at the strengths and weaknesses passed down. In his essay collection, "Such a Life" (University of Nebraska Press, 214 pages, $16.95), Lee Martin introduces us to his father, a bluest-of-blue-collar farmer, who loses both hands through a simple mistake out in the fields. Martin portrays himself as introspective and drawn to the writing life from a young age, feeling that he has failed to meet the standards of labor and manhood set by the previous generations. And when he reaches late middle age and has not yet produced a son of his own, things only get worse.

In one essay, a young Martin goes "camping" with some high school friends -- a front for going out into the woods and getting drunk. The next day, he feels bad in every sense of the word, and the feeling is compounded when he returns home and realizes he left something of importance back at the campsite. He cannot go get it himself; the other kids would ridicule him. The only option is for his parents to skip church and go retrieve it for him. The stoicism in Martin's request -- and the stoicism in his father's response -- are heavy with the disappointment both men feel.

"Such a Life" strikes these father-son themes throughout the collection, with some essays branching out to other topics -- the difficulty of eating vegan meals in the South, or the complications of having a neighbor with deeply different political convictions -- but always circling back to the relationship between fathers and sons.

Martin has, over a series of books in various genres, detailed a galaxy of remembrances that have largely revolved around his relationship with his father. Their tempestuous relationship provides the heat and the light for this new collection -- heat generated from their years of conflict, and a light that shines on everything Martin does and has become.

While this light can be unsparing (Martin doesn't shy away from detailing his own foibles), it also provides clarity and understanding -- all we can hope for in an essay collection.

Matthew Tiffany is a writer and psychotherapist. He blogs at condalmo.com.