THIS IS WHY YOU'RE SINGLE

Cutting-edge dating advice for millennial women.

With candor and razor-sharp wit, comedy writers Lane and Spera debunk the mysteries of 21st-century dating. While snarky relationship advice dominates women’s magazine and self-help shelves these days, this comedic duo draws from their backgrounds in improv and online dramatic sketches to serve up a rich helping of role-playing designed to get advice-seeking single women to envision—and modify—their own behavior. Like modern-day Aesop’s fables, Lane and Spera’s wildly outlandish dating scenarios nevertheless contain threads of reality and more than one kernel of truth, hysterically showcasing the duplicitous nature of mating practices in the digital age. For example, the authors acerbically illustrate the perils of failing to accept a blow off by reading too much into text messages received during a “mobile love affair.” Riddled with doubt as a text-savvy friend deconstructs emojis tacked onto a curt, lackluster message sent after a love interest skips out on birthday plans, “you wish you could just call Tommy and ask him what was up—no need to interpret tone or intention. But you know better. Text messages are quick, easy, and impersonal, three things very appealing to members of your generation.” While always encouraging reasonable use of technology—“use all of the tools, websites, apps, friends, family, co-workers, and boob selfies at your disposal to find your dream guy”—alongside more real-time interpersonal interaction, Lane and Spera also advocate for dressing one’s age, providing a witty “Know Your Stores” shopping guide and noting that “21-year-old feathers do not make 21-year-old birds.” They also take a liberating stance on when to consummate a relationship: “The nation is being fed lies by women’s magazines and pop culture. It is left to us to reverse the establishment and claim the ‘sex date’ to be any date we so choose!”

Definitely not your mother’s guide to finding the perfect guy: at once hilarious and seriously practical.