12 Hours to a Great Marriage: A Step-by-Step Guide for Making Love Last

Twelve hours to a better marriage, questionable; 12 hours to read the book, feasible. Three of the team of authors who wrote Fighting for Your Marriage expand on that title's speaker-listener techniques with advice on commitment, forgiveness, and expectations. The program represents a no-fuss beginning point for couples starting to realize that marriage is hard work. The writing is direct and effective, and the entire exercise is palatably presented like a baseball game (first base is talking, second is having fun, and so on). The usual, undocumented "reference shows" vagaries abound, unfortunately, and advice, though sound, can be both unoriginal ("how you and your partner treat each other is key") and generic ("work to identify and decrease negative behaviors and increase positive ones"). Still, the techniques are workable and deceptively simple (e.g., "soften your tone"), even if they depend heavily on reader determination. Less a rescue manual for troubled marriages than a Cliff's Notes for a successful one, this is an optional purchase for public libraries, which might also consider Laurel Mellin's The Pathway: Follow the Road to Health and Happiness. (Library Journal, November 15, 2003)

"This book makes lasting love achievable."
— John Gray, author, Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus

"I love this book! It's like hiring your own top-notch relationship coach for twelve hours and getting a lifetime's worth of lessons for creating a loving, lasting marriage."
— Michele Weiner-Davis, author, The Sex-Starved Marriage and Divorce Busting

"It actually makes working on your marriage fun. In fact, it introduces an approach that believes having fun is one of the hallmarks of a successful marriage."
— Diane Sollee, smartmarriages.com, and founder and director of the Coalition for Marriage, Family and Couples Education

"Delivered in a personal and engaging style, the most helpful book yet from the 'dream team' of marriage educators."
— William J. Doherty, Ph.D., professor, University of Minnesota, and author of Take Back Your Marriage