Teen Marriage

Teenage Marriage: Coping with Reality
Lindsay
Revised Edition, 1988

Submitter: I have a treat for you: Teenage Marriage: Coping with Reality by Jeanne Warren Lindsay. As amusing as the title is, the stuff inside is the best. A chapter entitled, “Sex Begins in the Kitchen,” another called, “People Are Not for Hitting” as well as a scorecard to predict the success of your teenage marriage. Brilliant. While I think much of the ideas about how to get along with someone are sound, the old-fashioned, and generally unflattering photos are a serious turn-off to anyone who might be reading this book for actual self-help purposes. I spotted this book when someone returned it after recently checking it out! I’d love to see the look on that teacher/professor’s face when they look at this person’s bibliography. I don’t even want to imagine that the person had checked it out for any other purpose other than a shoddily researched paper. Clearly, a lot has changed since 1988, and not just the acceptability of mustaches. I’ll be leaving this one on our Head Reference Librarian’s desk with a note that says, “Update?”.

Holly: You’re right: this is too old to be truly useful to a school report or for personal use. The advice on household budgets is unrealistic, as well as the info on job skills. Plus, the pictures are dark and depressing. The couple on the cover are enough to turn off any teen from considering marriage!  Sure, they were cute on their wedding day, but now she’s rolling her eyes at him and has a headache and he’s just sitting there saying “duhhhhh.”