If you’re a mama reading this, you already know how much mothers do, day in and day out, in order to raise their children. But what about fathers? In Paul Raeburn’s newest book, Do Fathers Matter?: What Science Is Telling Us About the Parent We’ve Overlooked, the journalist and dad of five sets out to investigate the oft-underappreciated partner in parenting.

Raeburn hinges his book on personal insights and new studies—from neuroscientists, animal behaviorists, geneticists, and developmental psychologists—showing the scientific link between fathers and children. Some of the myth-busting research uncovers how men change when they are “expecting,” how they effect their child’s language development, why mom and dad’s relationship matters, how fatherhood influences a man’s health, and a plethora of other topics, including plenty of takeaway advice for dads and moms alike.

Overall, the author (who might have a slight bias, being a father to such a brood himself), makes the case for seeing dads—and their significance—in a new positive light, one not often shone in the mainstream. He points out that the lack of importance placed on fatherhood—and the overall stereotype of dads as bumbling, know-nothing fools—is becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy, with “fewer American fathers participating in the lives of their children now than at any time since the United States began keeping records.” If that statement alone alarms you, we suggest picking up a copy.

Do Fathers Matter?: What Science Is Telling Us About the Parent We’ve Overlooked, $18.81, Amazon.