Boca Raton Observer FEB 2011

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media blitz 8 in print

For many people relationships are a delicate balancing act between the closeness yearned for and the space needed. As its title implies, ‘Breathing Room: Creating Space To Be A Couple’ recognizes such inner conflict and instructs that solitude can be achieved by companionable understanding of the source of space issues.

thusiasm and confidence, is as much a celebration of marriage as it is a “how-to” manual. The couples featured overcame a gamut of challenges, including difficulties with children, infidelity and financial ruin. In each case, honest dialogue, open hearts and a willingness to remain a unified front helped them prevail. Consequently, each relationship was able to heal and grow stronger. The Blooms distill realworld wisdom into practical, positive advice for strengthening your own relationship.

Secrets Of Happy Couples: Loving Yourself, Your Partner And Your Life By Kim Olver The ability to love another or accept love is not always a natural talent, and can be virtually impossible without first loving oneself. Such is the premise of professional counselor Kim Olver’s book, which states that, for a relationship to thrive and be happy, self-love is a key ingredient. In her book, Olver not only surveys couples and prominent relationship experts for feedback and suggestions, but analyzes the Relationship Cycle, which moves from the Alone Stage,

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to the Getting Together Stage, to the Compatibility Stage, to the Maintenance Stage, and then, ultimately, back to the Alone Stage (according to Olver, at least 50 percent of us will find ourselves alone again due to death, divorce or personal decision). Also inside, you’ll find advice for surviving affairs, tolerating differences and more.

Breathing Room: Creating Space To Be A Couple By Elayne Savage, Ph.D. For many people relationships are a delicate balancing act between the closeness yearned for and the space needed. As its title implies, this book recognizes such inner conflict and instructs that solitude can be achieved by companionable understanding of the source of space issues, be they cultural, generational or gender-based. Psychotherapist Elayne Savage’s book also explores the clash between partners’ expectations, how to deal with disappointments and how to recognize hidden agendas, and seeks to help couples find ways to balance space, caring and connection. She asks, “Are you tired of hurt feelings and misunderstandings that lead to anger and re-

sentment?” “Is resentment eating away at your relationship and interfering with the good stuff?” If you answered yes to either of these questions, this book may be for you.

For Better: The Science Of A Good Marriage By Tara Parker-Pope Author Tara Parker-Pope presents her book as “the definitive guide to the most profound relationship of our lives.” Well, it is hard to argue with science. Inside, Parker-Pope examines the components of a successful marriage, including monogamy, love, sex, children, money and housework with input from biologists, neuroscientists, psychologists and sociologists. Along the way, she takes readers to some unusual places, at one point observing the likelihood of whether monogamy comes naturally to our species, based on comparisons with others in the animal kingdom (she concludes it’s certainly possible). She also observes the crucial role that regular sex plays in a marriage and examines the most productive way to handle conflict. Parker-Pope doesn’t so much instruct as she does present data and allow readers to draw their own conclusions. O


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