Overview

A major exploration of the state of marital dysfunction in America today and how couples can address it, told through the lives of five couples together in group therapy. For more than a year, journalist Laurie Abraham sat in with five troubled couples as they underwent the searing process of group marriage therapy. Published as The New York Times Magazine's cover story ""Can This Marriage Be Saved?"" the resulting article generated intense reader response and received the Award for Excellence in Journalism from the American Psychoanalytic Association. Though the article allowed Abraham to focus on only one couple, this book--which grew out of it and the reaction it inspired--tells the moving, fascinating story of all five. The couples: Can Leigh and Aaron find the intimacy their marriage lacks; will Bella and Joe resolve the imbalance of power that threatens to topple their marriage; are Sue Ellen and Mark as ideal as they seem; what happened to Rachael that Michael cannot acknowledge; and do Marie and Clem, with the help of therapist Judith Coché, come back from the brink of divorce? With the dexterity of a novelist, Abraham recounts the travails, triumphs, and reversals that beset the five couples. They work with their therapist--and each other--to find out whether they can rediscover the satisfaction in marriage that they once had. At times wrenching, at times inspiring, the sessions bring out the long-hidden resentments, misunderstandings, unmet desires, and unspoken needs that bedevil any imperiled couple. At the same time, these encounters provide road maps to reconciliation and revival that can be used by anyone in a relationship. Along the way, the author draws on her explorations of literature and Freudian theory, modern science, and today's cutting-edge research to decode the patterns and habits that suggest whether a troubled marriage will survive or die. Both an important look at the state of marital dysfunction and a reaffirmation of the enduring bonds of love, The Husbands and Wives Club is an extraordinary year in the life of the American marriage.

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9781416585503

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Reviews

“What is more interesting to read about than other people’s marriages? This is one of the smartest and most candid books on marriage I know.”—Phyllis Rose, author of Parallel Lives: Five Victorian Marriages

The Husbands and Wives Club is that rare work of nonfiction that reads like a really good novel-it's rich in character, drama, and emotional suspense. Laurie Abraham is a remarkably astute observer of the therapeutic process and of the five troubled marriages that lie at the heart of this absorbing and incisive book. -Tom Perrotta, author of Little Children Abraham skillfully weaves increasingly fascinating sessions of a couples therapy group with meticulous research about love, marriage, therapy, and humanity. The result-part science, part psychology, part riveting drama-left me moved, cheering, and, frankly, floored by how far these couples could come. -Cathi Hanauer, author of Sweet Ruin and editor of The Bitch in the House Abraham's premise seems simple: follow a group of couples through a year of marital therapy and see what happens. But the result-narratively, intellectually, spiritually-is a profound, inspiring reflection on one's own relationship in ways that have the potential to strengthen and even transform it. -Peggy Orenstein, author of Waiting for Daisy and Schoolgirls What is more interesting to read about than other people's marriages? This is one of the smartest and most candid books on marriage I know. -Phyllis Rose, author of Parallel Lives: Five Victorian Marriages The Husbands and Wives Club is that rare work of nonfiction that reads like a really good novel--it's rich in character, drama, and emotional suspense. Laurie Abraham is a remarkably astute observer of the therapeutic process and of the five troubled marriages that lie at the heart of this absorbing and incisive book. --Tom Perrotta, author of Little Children Abraham's premise seems simple: follow a group of couples through a year of marital therapy and see what happens. But the result--narratively, intellectually, spiritually--is a profound, inspiring reflection on one's own relationship in ways that have the potential to strengthen and even transform it. --Peggy Orenstein, author of Waiting for Daisy and Schoolgirls What is more interesting to read about than other people's marriages? This is one of the smartest and most candid books on marriage I know. --Phyllis Rose, author of Parallel Lives: Five Victorian Marriages Abraham skillfully weaves increasingly fascinating sessions of a couples therapy group with meticulous research about love, marriage, therapy, and humanity. The result--part science, part psychology, part riveting drama--left me moved, cheering, and, frankly, floored by how far these couples could come. --Cathi Hanauer, author of Sweet Ruin and editor of The Bitch in the House

Author Information

Laurie Abraham is a freelance writer and senior editor of Elle magazine and the author of Mama Might Be Better Off Dead: The Failure of Health Care in Urban America. Formerly the executive editor of Elle, she's written for New York Magazine, The New York Times Magazine, Mother Jones, and many other publications. Her work is also included in Best American Essays 2006, as well as the original collections The Bitch in the House, Maybe Baby, and The Secret Currency of Love. Laurie has bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from Northwestern University and a master's in law from Yale University.

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