THE JOY OF BEING SINGLE: Stop Putting Your Life on Hold and Start Living!

Guidance for singles written with well-off yuppies much in mind. Her main premise is an admirable one: we should live life fully, today; we are all, ultimately, responsible for our own happiness, and we should make the best of the lives we have, whether single or married, rather than put our lives on hold waiting for that perfect person. After that start, however, Harayda can offer just two kinds of advice: how to find a partner (join clubs, go to big parties, take classes, etc.), and how to justify our lives if we don't have one. She does the latter primarily by detailing the stresses and problems of marriage--less time, less privacy, etc. And she makes superficial arguments for singlehood: to be able to take a vacation whenever and wherever we want without having to consult; to be able to live wherever we want (and not have to worry about being in a good school district); to be able to pick up and leave a job/city/apartment without having to justify the actions. Harayda seems to forget that there are many singles who are not in a position (financially or emotionally) to take much of her advice. And that there are many married people who live perfectly fulfilled lives. A truly mixed bag. Good, on the one hand, for its advice on getting to know ourselves and taking control of our lives. Absolute piffle when it lapses into its sour rationalized put-downs of marriage and partnership.