THE WIDOWER

by Jane Burgess & Willard K. Kohn Kohn ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 17, 1977

A joint effort from a remarried widow and widower, which attempts to do for men what Caine's Widow does for women--place personal experience in a larger context. For most people, the stages of grief are similar, and both Kohns incorporate these insights (amply documented elsewhere) into their own stories. Caine, of course, turned her experience into a personal growth paradigm, learning to take full responsibility for a household and facing down the woman-alone myths. A widower rarely has such needs; more often he must confront the household chores but the social adjustments--giving emotional support to the children, finding companionship and sexual satisfaction--are more alike than different. The widower may also suffer exclusion from ""paired society,"" feel awkward about dating again, and receive unlikely or indelicate sexual offers. Although the Kohns acknowledge that many grow to like the single life, their experience turns the text toward remarriage, an exploration of its enticements and hazards--most specifically, how to handle the children. Low-keyed and sympathetic, without the flash of Widow.

Pub Date: Jan. 17, 1977

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Beacon

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1977

Categories: NONFICTION