Beyond Divorce

by Brenda Hunter

Book by Hunter, Brenda

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brenda Hunter’s Beyond Divorce: A Personal Journey is a remarkable book for being so unremarkable. It is a memoir about the process and psychological impact of divorce in modern American society from the perspective of a spurned wife. Brenda Hunter is clearly an intelligent, self-conscious person who has done the difficult work of addressing her emotional issues and is able to address the libertarian sexual ethics of contemporary society through the lens of her own divorce and remarriage. I picked this volume up a week after preaching on divorce, knowing that a had far less personal experience with divorce than necessary to be an effective counselor for those going through it. One psychological example should suffice in demonstrating the practical value of the book. In an early chapter, Hunter discusses the deep loneliness a new divorcee feels and the consequent temptation to have multiple lovers to salve the loneliness. This thesis was confirmed for me when a colleague went through a public divorce and made it known (to most in the office) that she was dating multiple men simultaneously. This book is a must not because it contains what ought to be, but rather because it contains what, sadly, so often is.