How to be Married
How to be Married

Author: Jo Piazza

Publisher: Harmony

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0451495551

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At age thirty-four, Jo Piazza got her romantic-comedy ending when she met the man of her dreams on a boat in the Galápagos Islands and was engaged three months later. But before long, Jo found herself riddled with questions. How do you make a marriage work in a world where you no longer need to be married? How does an independent, strong-willed feminist become someone's partner -- all the time? Journalist and author Jo Piazza writes a memoir of a real first year of marriage that will forever change the way we look at matrimony. A travel editor constantly on the move, Jo journeys to twenty countries on five continents to figure out what modern marriage means. Throughout this personal narrative, she gleans wisdom from matrilineal tribeswomen, French ladies who lunch, Orthodox Jewish moms, Swedish stay-at-home dads, polygamous warriors, and Dutch prostitutes. How to Be Married offers an honest portrait of a couple. When life throws more at them than they ever expected -- a terrifying health diagnosis, sick parents to care for, unemployment -- they ultimately create a fresh understanding of what it means to be equal partners during the good and bad times.

A French Wedding
A French Wedding

Author: Hannah Tunnicliffe

Publisher: Anchor

Published: 2017-06-06

Total Pages: 286

ISBN-13: 0385541856

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For fans of The Vacationers and The Little Paris Bookshop: A delicious novel full of romantic entanglements, fiery outbursts, and a range of secrets, about six college friends reuniting on the coast of Brittany to celebrate one of their own's fortieth birthday. "A delightful escape to the French seaside that I, for one, never wanted to leave."—Elin Hilderbrand, #1 New York Times bestselling author of 28 Summers Max is a washed-up rock star who's about to turn forty and feeling nostalgic for his university days. All he says he wants for his birthday is to host his old friends at his house in the French countryside for a weekend of good food and reminiscing. But he has an ulterior motive: Finally ready to settle down, this is his chance to declare his undying love to his best friend, Helen. Max's private chef, Juliette, has just returned to her hometown after a nasty breakup and her parents' failing health move her to sell her dream restaurant in Paris. Still reeling, Juliette throws herself into her job, hoping that the peace and quiet it offers will be the perfect cure for her broken heart. But when Max's friends arrive, the introverted, dreamy Juliette finds herself drawn out of her orderly kitchen and into their tumultuous relationships. A weekend thinking about the past spurs more than one emotional crisis, as the friends take stock of whether they've lived up to their ideals. Together for the first time in years, it's not long before love triangles, abandoned dreams, and long-held resentments bubble over, culminating in a wedding none of them ever expected.

Love Under the Skin
Love Under the Skin

Author: Cécile Coquet-Mokoko

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-04-15

Total Pages: 228

ISBN-13: 1000044149

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The rising visibility of interracial couples calls for increased attention to the overlapping of culture and race, in safe spaces centered on small-group dynamics, or in public spaces where peoples of African descent are under the public gaze. This comparative study seeks to de-center the U.S-centered viewpoint common to much of the literature on black/white relations. Based on nine years of fieldwork in the American South and in France, Coquet shows many unexpected parallels between the two societies. Gendered perceptions of cultural authenticity and sexual ethics are a guiding thread, being inseparable from the historical and political contingencies (re-)defining acceptable forms of dating, marrying, and parenting among cis-heterosexual couples in both societies. Her account emphasizes resilience and agency as couples seek to protect themselves and their children, while their extended or symbolic kinship networks help white partners acknowledge the existence of racial privilege.

The Meaning of Marriage
The Meaning of Marriage

Author: Timothy Keller

Publisher: Penguin Books

Published: 2013-11-05

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 1594631875

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Describes what marriage should be according to the Bible, arguing that marriage is a tool to bring individuals closer to God, and provides meaningful instruction on how to have a successful marriage.

Against Marriage
Against Marriage

Author: Anne-Marie-Louise d'Orléans, Duchesse de Montpensier

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2007-11-01

Total Pages: 118

ISBN-13: 0226534936

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In seventeenth-century France, aristocratic women were valued by their families as commodities to be married off in exchange for money, social advantage, or military alliance. Once married, they became legally subservient to their husbands. The duchesse de Montpensier—a first cousin of Louis XIV—was one of very few exceptions, thanks to the vast wealth she inherited from her mother, who died shortly after Montpensier was born. She was also one of the few politically powerful women in France at the time to have been an accomplished writer. In the daring letters presented in this bilingual edition, Montpensier condemns the alliance system of marriage, proposing instead to found a republic that she would govern, "a corner of the world in which . . . women are their own mistresses," and where marriage and even courtship would be outlawed. Her pastoral utopia would provide medical care and vocational training for the poor, and all the homes would have libraries and studies, so that each woman would have a "room of her own" in which to write books. Joan DeJean's lively introduction and accessible translation of Montpensier's letters—four previously unpublished—allow us unprecedented access to the courageous voice of this extraordinary woman.

The Bridesmaids
The Bridesmaids

Author: Eimear Lynch

Publisher: Picador

Published: 2014-04-29

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 1250041783

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"An entertaining beach read... [and] a nice way to provide your besties with reading material for the bachelorette weekend."—Lauren Conrad WHAT DO A FORMER FASHION MODEL, AN EX-NUN, AND A FRAT BOY HAVE IN COMMON? VIRTUALLY NOTHING, EXCEPT THAT EACH HAS EXPERIENCED A UNIVERSAL RITE OF PASSAGE: BEING A BRIDESMAID. Each year 11 million bridesmaids lead their best friends down the aisle. Most wear matching dresses, and nearly all have a thing or two to say about the bride. In this uproarious oral history, editor and journalist Eimear Lynch offers us an intimate glimpse at the moments the wedding photographer failed to capture. From the accidental bridesmaid who helped sew the bride into her "designer" gown to the tomboy who struggled to carry Princess Diana's twenty-five foot train, The Bridesmaids lifts the veil on the Big Day. Opening with her own experiences as a five-time 'maid, Eimear gives us stories that are by turns heartfelt, funny, scandalous, and sometimes downright strange. An ode to the good, the bad, the strapless chiffon, and the occasional three-piece suit—and, above all, to the supporting actresses and actors who wore them—The Bridesmaids is a colorful walk down the aisle that you won't want to miss, and the perfect companion for every bridesmaid-to-be.