In Edmund White's most moving novel yet, an American living in Paris finds his life transformed by an unexpected love affair. Austin Smith is pushing fifty, loveless and drifting, until one day he meets Julien, a much younger, married Frenchman. In the beginning, the lovers' only impediments are the comic clashes of culture, age, and temperament. Before long, however, the past begins to catch up with them. In a desperate quest to save health and happiness, they move from Venice to Key West, from Montreal in the snow to Providence in the rain. But it is amid the bleak, baking sands of the Sahara that their love is pushed to its ultimate crisis.
Discover God in the messiness of your marriage, as popular marriage and family columnist Joshua Rogers offers spouses hope with real-life stories from his own marriage and helps you see how God is at work in the ordinary and extraordinary of your relationship. Confessions of a Happily Married Man is a husband's painfully honest account of his first ten years of marriage. It offers a window into the perspective of a man who went from "hello" to "I do" in nine months and then figured out how hard marriage could be. When Joshua Rogers thought back on the marriage books he had read or sermons about marriage he had heard, it occurred to him that he could only remember one thing about them: the stories. That's why this book is anchored by stories that other couples will relate to and can easily learn from. The stories are cringe-worthy, humorous, inspiring, heart-breaking, and full of wisdom--but the author isn't telling the reader what to do with that wisdom. He's letting the reader learn along with him as he's gradually becoming more self-aware, increasingly grateful for his wife, and surprised to discover what God is doing in the middle of it all.
A Married Man's Survival Guide is a straight-shooting, no-nonsense guide to what it takes to thrive and prosper as a man in a long-term committed relationship. Based on the guidance of "masters" who have 30 or more years of committed married life, the Guide takes men through such things as preparing for life in this wilderness called marriage to your personal "fitness" routine to ensure lasting success. Along the way, the Guide deals with handling your wife's emotions, dealing with her "upsets" and even walks men through such touchy subjects as separation, divorce and affairs. The concluding chapter contains "250 things you can do to bring a smile to her face" and is based on a challenge the authors gave a men's class they were teaching. The editor writes, "Smartly written as a jungle survival manual, the Guide relies on generous doses of tongue-in-cheek humor to move the reader along at a comfortable pace with plenty of been-there-done-that candid anecdotes add appeal and credibility."
Marriage and becoming a father are two of the most important Rites of Passage in a man's life. Unfortunately, our society no longer recognizes them as such, nor do the elder men prepare, counsel, and train the younger men to succeed in these endeavors. As a result, good men and women enter marriage with false expectations and misconceptions about how to create a successful marriage and a meaningful life. There is hope! If you are struggling & losing faith in your marriage, don't quit. You can learn and master the principles to be successful, end the conflict, save your marriage, and restore your family. If you are not married, you can prepare yourself to enjoy the best that a lifelong marriage can bring. You can lead your family to thrive providing your children a secure and loving home. At the end of the day, it all comes down to your ability to lead yourself and then your ability to lead your family based on your actions. The direction of your leadership comes from the foundation of your life, your purpose. Your purpose will determine the qualities of character that you must develop. You must consciously choose and master the attitude necessary to sustain the self-discipline to navigate the storms of life so that you can serve your purpose. If you remain focused on these four attributes of your life and firmly rooted in your values, you will create an amazing legacy for yourself, your wife, your children, and your community. Truly, practical guidance for real success!
Is adultery truly a horrible and condemnable sin? Or is it an uncontrollable act, driven by unprovoked passion and desire that exists in two people who are naturally drawn to one another? Is the other woman really a she devil? Or could she be the woman next door, whose true love happens to be a married man? Skylar Stone explores these issues and more in her provocative novel, which may hit uncomfortably close to home for some readers.
Originally written in 1899 and published by Thomas Burleigh in London, a rare edition of the 107-year-old work was procured by literary historian and author Michelle Lovric. This tome has been reproduced with attention to the finer details of its epoch. As Lovric explains, "What appealed to me most was the way in which the book dealt sensitively and directly with areas that are often blind spots for husbands: issues that seem small but which can in fact constitute huge betrayal in the hearts and minds of their wives." Lovibond writes on topics ranging from "The Honeymoon" and "The Wife's Purse" to "The First Baby" and "Second Marriages". On "The Choice of a Wife": "It is a fatal thing to form an impression at first sight, whether favourable or reverse, and let it run away with you."
