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University of California Press

Happy Singlehood

The Rising Acceptance and Celebration of Solo Living
by Elyakim Kislev (Author)
Hardcover Paperback eBook
Price: $24.95 / £21.00
Publication Date: Feb 2019
Edition: 1st Edition
Title Details:
Rights: World
Pages: 280
ISBN: 9780520971004
Trim Size: 6 x 9
Illustrations: 5 b/w figures
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About the Book

Happy Singlehood charts a way forward for singles to live life on their terms, and shows how everyone—single or coupled—can benefit from accepting solo living. Based on personal interviews, quantitative analysis, and extensive review of singles’ writings and literature, author Elyakim Kislev uncovers groundbreaking insights on how unmarried people create satisfying lives in a world where social structures and policies are still designed to favor marriage.

In this carefully crafted book, Kislev investigates how singles nurture social networks, create innovative communities, and effectively deal with discrimination. Happy Singlehood challenges readers to rethink how single people organize social and familial ties in new ways, and illuminates how educators, policymakers, and urban planners should cater to their needs.

About the Author

Elyakim Kislev has a PhD in sociology from Columbia University and is a faculty member at the Hebrew University, specializing in minorities, social policy, and singles studies.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments

Introduction
1. The Age of Singlehood
2. Happy Singlehood in Old Age
3. Defying Social Pressure
4. Sleeping Alone, Bowling Together
5. Singling in a Postmaterialist World
6. Work Hard, (but) Play Hard
7. The Future of Happy Singlehood

Conclusion: What Can States, Cities, and Social Institutions Do for Singles?
Notes
Index

Reviews

"[Happy Singlehood] thoughtfully explores the unacknowledged increase in single living. Its serious consideration could result in greater freedom of choice, happier individuals, and more efficient economies."
— Foreword Reviews
"Happy Singlehood thoughtfully explores the unacknowledged increase in single living. Its serious consideration could result in greater freedom of choice, happier individuals, and more efficient economies."
— Foreword Reviews
“Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers.”
— CHOICE
“In this well-sourced and researched book, Kislev thoroughly explains the growing popularity of the ‘single by choice’ phenomenon, providing real-life examples culled from interviews and blogs with singles."
— Jerusalem Post
“If you don’t want to stop being single and get ready to mingle, Kislev even recommends countries you can visit that are more welcoming of singlehood, with Spain, Italy and Greece being especially welcoming. But even if you don’t want to leave UConn, just remember, despite the several handholders walking down the streets, you’re not alone: The majority of the population of North America is single as well.”
— The Daily Campus
“[Kislev would] also like to see policies enacted that would make it easier for single people to get by: the growth of small apartments with shared spaces, for instance. He also suggests talking to children about ‘how to accept singlehood and live happily ever, after even if they will find themselves alone,’ he said. ‘We need to accept the notion of a full scale of what it means to be committed: marriage, cohabitation, living apart and being together, occasional couplehood, and so on,’ he said. ‘The relationship landscape should be as diverse as we are.’”
— Huffington Post Canada
“The book...is not just for academic types. Anyone interested in a smart, thoughtful, unconventional take on single life will find a lot to like in Happy Singlehood. Kislev treats readers to the kinds of approaches we have come to expect from the most successful nonfiction trade books, including, for example, illustrating his points with stories from the single people he interviewed as well as anecdotes from his own life.”
— PsychCentral
“Bringing together first-person accounts and data analysis, Kislev takes us on a global tour de force of demographic change, skillfully charting the rise of “singlehood” worldwide and capably detailing its implications for inequality and wellbeing. This is an immensely readable and welcome addition to the literature on single life, and a call to action for scholars and policy makers alike.”—Alondra Nelson, President, Social Science Research Council

“A breath of fresh air. Kislev brilliantly shows that singles can be very happy in the modern world.”—Jocelyn Crowley, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, author of Gray Divorce

“Read this book. Whether you want to remain single or your goal is a healthy relationship, this book has all the answers.”—Susan J. Elliott, author of Getting Past Your Breakup

“When Singles Studies becomes a recognized discipline, this book will be an important part of it.”—Bella DePaulo, author of Singled Out

“Shows how singles live—happily—despite continued discrimination against them.”—Laurie Essig, Middlebury College, author of Love, Inc.
 

"I was eager to read this book as soon as I heard about it. Kislev captures the genuine joy of adults who are single by choice, whether life-long or following the dissolution of a marriage. The scope of its ideas, as well as its international perspective, makes this book a valuable contribution to the field."--Joan DelFattore, University of Delaware, author of Knowledge in the Making