Becoming Family : How To Build A Stepfamily That Really Works

More than one in five families with two parents is a stepfamily, and eight million children live in stepfamilies. The stepfamily is both a wonderful blessing and a challenge. Drawing on their own experiences, and that of the stepfamilies with whom they have worked, Robert and Jeanette Lauer give realistic, helpful advice on how to deal with the major challenges in stepfamily life: loss, adjustment, personal identity, family identity, loyalty conflicts, former spouses, resources, stepparenting, and marital intimacy. The authors encourage the formation of stepparent support groups, and an appendix includes activities and suggestions for small-group discussion.