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Library Journal Review

In this well-written and realistic book, the authors present their theme that all enduring relationships pass through three recurring stages: expansion and promise, contraction and betrayal, and resolution. The details of each phase are described, as are the various ways in which couples repeatedly cycle through these stages. During this process, the authors claim, the character of the individual and the character of the couple co-evolve. Basically descriptive and speculative, Couples delineates the passage on which all relationships embark. Because it is always useful to know what to expect, this book is remarkably helpful. Recommended for public and academic libraries.-- January Adams, Somerville P.L., N.J. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

All couples traverse three distinct stages during the course of a relationship, according to Dym (co-founder of the Family Institute in Cambridge, Mass.) and Glen (co-founder of Family Systems Medicine, also in Cambridge). During the first stage, called Expansion and Promise--what we usually think of as ``falling in love''--couples establish the foundation of their relationship and generate ``interactional sequences''--predictable patterns of communication. Eventually most couples must acknowledge their individual limitations; conflicts arise as they enter ``contradiction and betrayal.'' If the couple survives this time of mutual disillusionment, they move on to ``resolution,'' where they work through differences and establish a lasting love. Unusual in its scope and depth, this book, though somewhat reductive, examines the impact of cultural expectations and the influence of outside parties (``context'') on intimate relationships. Case histories and diverse couples including several gay and lesbian partnerships are presented. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Booklist Review

Family therapists Dym, a historian and clinical psychologist, and Glenn, a psychiatrist, examine how ongoing intimate relationships succeed. Using a construct that divides interactions into three patterns--expansion and promise, contraction and betrayal, and resolution--they see relationships move between them in distinctive, infinitely variable cycles. Readers will see familiar behaviors in a nonjudgmental context through vivid portraits and clear, detailed descriptions and definitions of the processes involved. Discussions covering such topics as how society's "cultural narrative" defines "acceptable" behavior, or the difference between the individuals within a couple and the character they have together, assist readers in recognizing their own rhythms, and problems, and suggest solutions by showing the many paths enduring relationships take. ~--Virginia Dwyer