Faithful Attraction: Discovering Intimacy, Love, and Fidelity in American Marriage

Catholic priest, sociology professor (University of Arizona) and novelist ( Rite of Spring ), Greeley contends that despite conventional wisdom, much-touted alternative lifestyles, polls and media reports to the contrary, marriage is not only thriving, but fidelity is still practiced by a large majority of both sexes. The book, based on several national surveys conducted separately by Gallup and the University of Chicago, reveals that communication, character and shared values--including prayer--rank with sex (preferably combined with romance) in determining the happiness of married men and women of all ages, classes and regions. And while acknowledging the rising American divorce rate, Greeley, in an upbeat, optimistic work written with some humor, syggests that the degree of happiness of those who remain united is higher than it is for those who split. (Feb.)