Amber (berd) reviewed The Husbands and Wives Club: A Year in the Life of a Couples Therapy Group on + 214 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
As much as I wanted to love this book, I couldn't even finish it. At times I've wanted to be a marriage counselor so the aspect of couples therapy grabbed me. Unfortunately the author's writing style annoyed me. I tried to read as much of it as I could, but I didn't get past the first chapter. I had to force myself just to read that much. I'm sure the idea of the book was a good one overall, but maybe if it'd been written in a different way, I could have finished it. I have to say I was quite disappointed.
David T. (zoburg) reviewed The Husbands and Wives Club: A Year in the Life of a Couples Therapy Group on
This is a decent book. It follows the story of a few couples in therapy. The author follows one couple much more closely than the other 4 couples. Parts of the book drag but overall a good book.
Elizabeth R. (esjro) -
I tried to like this book, I really, really did! The premise is interesting: a journalist sits in on a year's worth of couples therapy group sessions. Indeed the sections in which she describes the five couples in the group and their interactions in therapy are interesting, as is the dynamics of the group.
However, interspersed with descriptions of the group sessions are segues about different philosophies of marriage counseling, and profiles of the originators of the different schools of thought. These sections are dry and go into an academic level of detail that is inconsistent with the novelistic tone of the rest of the book. The transitions between recounts of the therapy sessions and history of psychoanalysis for couples are jarring.
This book does have some interesting content, but I wish it flowed better.
However, interspersed with descriptions of the group sessions are segues about different philosophies of marriage counseling, and profiles of the originators of the different schools of thought. These sections are dry and go into an academic level of detail that is inconsistent with the novelistic tone of the rest of the book. The transitions between recounts of the therapy sessions and history of psychoanalysis for couples are jarring.
This book does have some interesting content, but I wish it flowed better.
Sarah B. (caffeinegirl) reviewed The Husbands and Wives Club: A Year in the Life of a Couples Therapy Group on + 114 more book reviews
Although this book was reviewed as "one of the smartest and most candid books on marriage", it really seemed to be more about couples therapy than it was about marriage. It follows several couples in therapy while examining the practice of and theory behind group marriage therapy. Much time is spent discussing the therapist, Coché, and her techniques, as well as the history of the psychology of relationship dynamics and therapy practice. This part is very dry.
The structure of the book also made it difficult to read. Despite the introduction of each of the five couples at the beginning, I quickly forgot which person was which and who was married to whom. I'm not sure that following all five couples simultaneously and chasing down the history and theory behind the therapy at the same time was the best choice for this book. Theoretically, the couples should be interacting and influencing each other, but I didn't really see that happening in the book. So from a reader's perspective, I think it would have been easier and more satisfying to follow each couple individually, one chapter at a time. If Abraham still wanted to cover some point of theory or history, she could have picked one idea that was illustrated by each couple and explored it through their particular issue. Honestly, though, I think she was prevented from presenting a better structure in this book by Coché, who doesn't come across as having much of a long-term plan behind her actions.
I wanted to stay with it, but after about a third of the book I still didn't know who was who and I just really didn't care about them yet. Even though hints had been dropped along the way that at least one couple was headed for separation, there wasn't any tension from page to page. I didn't finish it.
The structure of the book also made it difficult to read. Despite the introduction of each of the five couples at the beginning, I quickly forgot which person was which and who was married to whom. I'm not sure that following all five couples simultaneously and chasing down the history and theory behind the therapy at the same time was the best choice for this book. Theoretically, the couples should be interacting and influencing each other, but I didn't really see that happening in the book. So from a reader's perspective, I think it would have been easier and more satisfying to follow each couple individually, one chapter at a time. If Abraham still wanted to cover some point of theory or history, she could have picked one idea that was illustrated by each couple and explored it through their particular issue. Honestly, though, I think she was prevented from presenting a better structure in this book by Coché, who doesn't come across as having much of a long-term plan behind her actions.
I wanted to stay with it, but after about a third of the book I still didn't know who was who and I just really didn't care about them yet. Even though hints had been dropped along the way that at least one couple was headed for separation, there wasn't any tension from page to page. I didn't finish it.
