On my engagement to a Jewish man, I found myself plowing through one badly written, biased book on intermarriage after another. This book was one of the only ones so far that was even worth checking out from the library! It is comprehensive- it doesn't dwell on the "December Dilemma" or in-laws to the exclusion of all else like so many others do, for instance. I appreciated the way the authors presented several possible solutions to each dilemma rather than just one or two- this was *very* helpful and often thought-provoking. My SO and I had some good discussions based on this book.
The major weakness of the book was its insistence on treating stereotypes about Jews, Irish, Italians, etc. as sociological facts. This offended me at first, but as I read more, it simply amused me and made me giggle at how inaccurate it was. I am Irish/Native American, for instance, but my personality type and that of my immediate family is more like the book's description of Italians and Jews than the book's description of Irish or WASPs. My fiance, a Jew, is a classic WASP by their description, and so is his family! What is the use of throwing these stereotypes around? I am not a feisty Ice Princess and he is not Woody Allen, for Pete's sake! I was also disappointed that there was nothing about ethnic groups other than white, also. A Black/Jewish couple encounters some special challenges in our society, for instance.
All in all, the book was good, but had some major flaws. Still, I would recommend it, as it is better than most of its type.
