Between Sisters

Entertaining, compassionate and informative, this examination of the complex bonds between sisters builds on interviews with more than 75 women. Their stories illustrate the ``light-and-dark world'' of sisterhood--an ambivalence, says Mathias, neglected by both psychology and feminism. Thus she focuses on sororal competition as well as support, estrangements as well as ``private languages.'' Such specific cases as twinship, a sister's death, the birth of a sister's first child, etc., are also explored. Among other issues, the author explains how sisters can have very different memories of a particular event, and she examines the effects of family dynamics and such factors as birth order, family size and parental favoritism. She also proposes that a woman's relationships with her biological sisters critically affects her psychological development. Mathias, who writes about mental health issues for the Washington Post , is the eldest of four sisters. Author tour. (Nov.)