Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts: Seven Questions to Ask Before (and After) You Marry

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Summary: Practical points, but Finding God in your Marriage ruined it
Review: This book has good information, some of which may seem like common sense to some. Good points to ponder and discuss. The last chapter kind of ruined it for me though -- when I got to the section about "Finding God in your Marriage", I thought they might just be talking about finding general spirituality, but no, they were actually talking about a Christian God and Jesus Christ. If you're Jewish or have another religion, or just are not religious (atheist/agnostic), this might bother you, as it did me. This whole last chapter is basically stating that couples need to attend church, pray together, etc., or else "studies show" that their marriages are more likely to fail. If you reject this notion, you might not like this book. Or you could just not read the last chapter, because the rest of the book has very valid points and is actually very good.

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Summary: A MUST read for couples planning to marry!
Review: This book is fabulous. My husband I read it as part of our pre-marital preparation, and we return to the principles taught in it frequently. It gives a solid look at relationships and the things that make a marriage tick. Having the perspectives of the two married authors gives this book an advantage over other pre-marital books because it accurately portrays both the male and female perspectives, emotions, and needs in a marriage. This book is a must read, whether you're just engaged or have been married for 10 years!

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Summary: Great book
Review: This book was a great help to me and my now husband when we were engaged.It was very helpful in teaching us ways to communicate! We gave it to our pastor who ended up using all there book for pre-marital programs. We have now been married for 5 years and highly recommend this book to everyone who is married or thinking about it! It can help improve any relationship!

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Summary: Not worthless, but don't bother buying the workbooks.
Review: This book was recommended to us by several friends and my mother, so we bought and read it. I would have been happier had I borrowed it from the library and not spent the money. It has some good common-sense suggestions to keep a relationship working, but nothing earth-shattering. The only things I found really helpful were the triangular model of relationships and the chapter on ebb and flow. Other than that, if you've taken Psychology 101 this book has nothing new for you. Also, I was very disappointed in the workbooks. The book makes you feel like you are missing out if you don't stop every few paragraphs to do an exercise in the workbook, but the workbook is exceptionally lame and consists mostly of empty lines and questions that are obvious to the reader anyway-- definitely not worth $14 extra. If you want a really fantastic marriage book, try "I Pledge You My Troth" by James Olthuis, if you can find it.

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Summary: Read this before you get engaged!
Review: This book/workbook is so helpful and I highly recommend it to any couple headed towards marriage. Many couples are naive, like myself, and think that they talked about everything they need to talk about together! This isn't about conversational topics necessarily. It provokes conversation and allows each of you to get to know each other on a deeper level. You'll identify unspoken needs, marriage expecations and styles of your significant other. The book helps you look realistically at marriage and put the planning into it that it deserves. I orginally read the book solo and found it to be insightful. A year later, my boyfriend and I took a Pre-Engagement Class together and it turned out to be fully based on this book/workbook! It is so much more beneficial when studied together! I can tell you that this book has brought us so much closer together and gave us the confidence needed to move towards engagement.

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Summary: a MUST for anyone getting married
Review: This is a wonderful book, well-written and very true-to-life. My fiance and I were told to read this book before we were married, and it really has given us insight about each other. I can't imagine starting my life with someone without reading this book with them first. It really has given us a sense of security in knowledge about ourselves and each other.

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Summary: Super Helpful
Review: This is by far one of the best marriage preparation books I have read. I urge every engaged couple to read it and if possible to also go through 1000 Questions for Couples by Michael Webb. I tell all my clients to get those two.

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Summary: An excellent counseling tool for dating or engaged couples!
Review: This workbook, along with the main book, are excellent counseling tools for couples engaged or considering marriage. It is also excellent for couples that are already married. It is professionally done, and includes many exercises that help couples communicate their expectations about marriage and eliminate some problems before they begin. It is well worth the money.

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Summary: Agree with Virginia Reader
Review: Yes. This book was a great source of pre-marital questions and awnsers, but it did indeed have a hidden agenda. I too would not have purchased the book knowing that the entire last chapter was based on Christian principals and marriage.