Actually, It Is Your Parents' Fault: Why Your Romantic Relationship Isn't Working, and How to Fix It

Despite its reassuring title, readers troubled by romance snafus aren't completely off the hook; this clever self-help is for individuals who aren't afraid to confront their past, take some responsibility, lose their guilt and start breaking bad relationship habits. Written specifically for couples, author and columnist Van Munching (Boys Will Put You on a Pedestal So They can Look Up Your Skirt), along with practicing couples therapist Katz, gives a guided tour through the foundations of a healthy relationship, starting with the importance of self-awareness-a key component-and continuing through the process of reviving a romance. Utilizing common therapy jargon like ""the relationship is the patient, not the individuals,"" and tried-and-true strategies like journaling, the text does resemble its predecessors and peers, but uses anecdotes and metaphors to elicit fresh insight, as in a comparison of the unconscious mind to a horror movie basement-a place where the answers lie, but no one ever wants to go. Though it's a bit of a bait-and-switch (the backpedaling begins with the introduction's title, ""Okay, It's Not All Your Parents' Fault""), this is a welcoming guide that gives readers a long view of human relationships.