cover image Not ""Just Friends"": Protect Your Relationship from Infidelity and Heal the Trauma of Betrayal

Not ""Just Friends"": Protect Your Relationship from Infidelity and Heal the Trauma of Betrayal

Shirley P. Glass. Free Press, $25 (448pp) ISBN 978-0-7432-2549-6

Refusing to pander to audiences expecting Dr. Phil-type quick fixes, Glass (who has appeared on Oprah herself) chooses ""a new, fact-based, scientifically and therapeutically responsible approach"" to a subject she contends is fraught with public and professional misconceptions. Drawing on research studies (her own and others') and clinical cases from her 25 years as a psychotherapist, she explores ""the new crisis of infidelity"" resulting from platonic relationships that become progressively intense. Personal and professional friendships between men and women have become so prevalent and accepted that, according to Glass, even ""good"" people in ""good"" marriages can be swept away in a riptide of emotional intimacy more potent than sheer sexual attraction. Glass scrutinizes affairs and offers well-defined guidelines, including tips for determining how vulnerable individuals and relationships are to temptation, and prescriptions for keeping relationships ""safe,"" repairing betrayal-induced damages and recovering from the trauma. Glass's credentials and commitment lend this book credence as a valuable resource; Staeheli's easy, personable style and the well-organized format make it user-friendly, too.