All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation

This book is an absolutely brilliant page-turner and should be required reading for every young woman who does not know the history of her sex: what has been fought for, what has been won, and what stands to be lost--before she votes (as all women should!) in the upcoming general election. This book isn't just about women like me, who chose to buck the system and to remain single and childless, it also beautifully illustrates the glorious freedom finally won that allowed ALL women CHOICES--options to the rigid social structures we continually allow ourselves to be boxed into through the ages.Ms. Traister has augmented meticulous research with a sensitive, intelligent analysis of women's past, present, and possible future. She wisely points out that we are at a supremely important time--that we can continue forward to evolve as human beings, or retreat and be eclipsed by those who are intimidated by and fearful of the female sex--particularly men whose misogyny is based in fiction, myth, religion, and greed for power. Traister encourages women, through knowledge, to embrace the powerful block of society that we already are, and to use that power humanely, with courage, and to make the world a better place in areas that men in power have failed to do so.This is truly a fascinating, well-written, non-biased book of crucial importance that has appeared when such a book is most needed. I am buying copies for all the young women I know, which I hope will open dialogues about history in general, as well as my own experiences through the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and now. The last half of the 20th Century brought with it the last Women's Movement and to have lived through such times and then have a young woman write about it, validates all the battles well fought and sacrifices we chose to make. We are, after all, PEOPLE first. Discrimination, intimidation, harassment, and class limitations should be sins of the past, not the future. We must learn from history for if we do not, we will suffer consequences already overcome and possibly face even worse ones.Hurrah for Ms. Traister and her courage to flaunt her intelligence in a sophisticated, articulate, tasteful, and truthful tale of all women!

I learned about this book from hearing an interview with the author on NPR. It sounded interesting, so I bought a copy of the book and started reading.From the start I was engaged by the author in her tales of the pressures brought upon women to marry and have children. Of course in the first half of the 20th century women didn't have much choice. There were few opportunities to work and support themselves other than in menial jobs. As the economy changed, and more women entered the work force, things gradually changed.Traister covers these changes and describes the situation today. The age of marriage has steadily increased, and more and more women are remaining single. For the first time, the number of households headed by a single woman are in the majority.An interesting and empowering look at single life.

Informative. Every woman should read this book!

"In the most intelligent races . . . there are a large number of women whose brains are closer in size to the of gorillas than to the most developed male brain. This inferiority is so obvious that no one can protest it for a moment; only its degree is worth discussion." - Gustave Le Bon, 1879This is NOT an anti-marriage book; it's a discussion of the stigmas (see quote above) and history surrounding single women in the U.S. Few of us realize the to actually have a job, a woman couldn't be married. A married woman legally did not exist, so few laws existed to protect women as individuals. So before feminism gave women basic rights, single women struggled to exist and support themselves without marrying. The need to marry often drove women to marry unsuitable men, resulting in miserable marriages of necessity. While this was not every case, we have seen examples in literature (i.e. Charlotte Lucas in Pride and Prejudice ) that illustrate this point.Traister argues that women's independence allows them to wait and marry the right man, if they desire to marry at all, rather than jumping into a marriage and settling for a less suitable man to gain economic stability. For women, adulthood no longer begins at marriage. The altar no longer represent the plunge into independence. Women can live on their own and support themselves. This shift in our culture has had some fascinating implications, which I will let you read for yourself. ;)Traister also points out that more and more marriages consist of partners who both have jobs and share childcare and household responsibilities. The change from women as subservient, legally non-existent servants to full-fledged partners has changed the way marriage works in modern society.I have read several books on a similar topic, but this book by far is the best--the research, style, and execution is so well done. For everyone, not just women, this books reminds us how hard women have had to work for every inch of liberty we have. Hurrah for egalitarianism.

It is a wonderful book, pertaining deeper insights on the social institutions of marriage and family from the point of view of unmarried Single women. However, it also maps the lived experiences of Single women in their daily lives while trying to address the areas of women agency and the evolving family dynamics.

As a single 40 year old woman who spent the better part of her life NOT in relationships, this book spoke to me like nothing else. I connected with and enjoyed this book so much and love how current it is. Reading classic feminist books is always interesting and I won't stop but it was amazing to read about things which apply to right now. This book make me feel proud for the independent and adventurous life I have lead and I can't thank the author enough for this.

Repite has la saciedad cosas que todas las mujeres pensantes conocemos por lo que no me ha interesado en absoluto. No pude terminarlo.

Fantastic book. I recommend that all 'single' and 'women with partners' and 'men' read this book. Well researched; well written; and every paragraph is interesting. Particularly timely while I was reading it was a paragraph about the Chicago Federation Teachers, whose leader, Margaret Haley was described 'by a conservative businessman as a "unladylike, nasty woman'. This was in 1910. I read that page following the 3rd debate between Trump and Clinton when Trump called Hillary Clinton a "nasty woman". We've still a long way to go in this society!

This was a series of observations about demographics - but interesting!