Flower Girl Book

I stumbled upon this book last week on Facebook. Someone had posted a New York Times article covering National Singles and Unmarried Week. Bella DePaulo, Ph.D. Harvard, was mentioned along with her newest book Singlism: what it is, why it matters and how to stop it. (The latter is on my wishlist. It's an anthology by 26+ contributors on the topic.) At any rate, DePaulo is the first author I've read to really face the topic head-on as a social scientist with an objective, critical eye. The book examines myths about marriage and happiness as well as why so many singles are indeed content with their lives. DePaulo brings forth studies concerning material discrimination against singles (divorced, widowed and never-married) which I found quite fascinating. She urges the reader to diversify one's life, to seek comfort in work, relationships, and community. She comes out a winner in demanding that the government stay out of marriage, allowing financial perks such as Social Security benefits to be shared by all caretakers or significant others (sexual or not) as do many industrial nations. I look forward to reading her anthology and urge others to read her work, share her findings with others and above all demand a cessation in being "singled out." Doing so does NOT imply that one is anti-marriage or anti-couples, but it does underscore that all people are created equal. A lovely read! Includes index, notes and bibliography.