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Women Living Single: Thirty Women Share Their Stories of Navigating Through a Married World by Lee Reilly Format: Hardcover, 224 pages Synopsis Even in today's enlightened society, single women are often looked upon with suspicion, while married women are regarded as stable and familiar. Women Living Single explores the life paths of 30 ever-single women aged 28 to 76, and is a personal account of how these women function without the influence of a spouse. Reilly shares clear, surprising insights into the solitary experince and the female experience <Amazon.com>. Review Since single women are statistically happier than married women and single men, the idea that society still considers "old maids" a "condition" to be cured has its roots in mythologies long abandoned to reality. Reilly argues a case for the joys of single womanhood using interviews of 30 women between the ages of 28 and 76 who describe their family and friends, careers, the ways that society perceives them and how they perceive themselves. These women (painter, filmmaker, teacher, fire fighter, nurse) demonstrate the attractive diversity on the other side of marriage where women are doing everything but waiting for Prince Charming to save them. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or. <Booknews, Inc. , September 1, 1996> With humor and honesty, award-winning author Lee Reilly explores the joys and trials of the "ever-single" woman in a world defined by the married. In Women Living Single, she tells the refreshing stories of thirty unmarried women of all ages, struggling alone to live life to its fullest, and succeeding. Caitlin never decided to remain unmarried—her singleness just happened when she made choices to pursue her art career. Lindsay broke her engagement to travel and become a teacher. Like countless others, they don’t fit the role their family and friends have defined for them. Instead, they each write their own script building vibrant lives—setting their own goals, creating their own sense of family, and planning their own success. Her own fulfilled single life enables Lee Reilly to write about women’s choices and difficulties with wisdom and sensitivity. <Record Books, Inc., http://www.recordedbooks.com/ > EMPATHY No. 1999.09.24-01. Bill Edwards wrote: Last week I listened to Women Living Single (narrated by Recorded Books’ Barbara Caruso). This is a well written book. Reilly successfully reported research done by others, developing the themes she discovered, and revealing her methodology without being pedantic. I highly recommend this book. Reilly is not an advocate in this book. She is trying to understand herself and other "ever-single women." While she excludes divorced women, single males and lesbians from her study, Reilly demonstrate sensitivity to her readers who might not be ever-single heterosexual adult women. Her approach was to interview 30 ever-single women between the ages of 28 and 76 who describe their family and friends, and careers. These women tell how they approached the problem of life and how others have treated them. These women come from a variety of background. Some are in romantic relationships, most have had romantic relationships with men. A few have had children. Reilly occasionally shares her own experiences being ever single. Nearly all the women reported that they had expected and wanted to marry, and most haven’t ruled out that they will still marry. Reilly never advocates a lifestyle, but reports on the women’s experience and identifies some common themes. One interesting question which she never finally answers is: What do you call the ever single heterosexual woman? "Old maid" will not do. "Spinster" has some sour connotations, but charm as well. Reilly, while she does not advocate for women to be ever single, does have some strong criticism of inaccurate and unkind stereotypes of single women in English literature, and in motion pictures and television shows. She balances this criticism by reflecting on the positive family stories and cultural institutions which treasure ever single women. After reading her book I believe you will understand people better. Not only did I feel able to understand people better, but Reilly provides some interesting references which will keep me reading for weeks to come. |
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