American Families: A Multicultural Reader

by Stephanie Coontz

Book Overview

In the past forty years, American families have become more racially and ethnically diverse than ever before. Different family forms and living arrangements have also multiplied, with single-parent families, cohabiting couples with children, divorced couples with children, stepfamilies, and newly-visible same-sex families. During the same period, socioeconomic inequality among families has risen to levels not seen since the 1920s.

This second...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0415958210
• ISBN13: 9780415958219
• Release Date: March 2008
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 488 Pages
• Weight: 2.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.0" x 10.1"

Customer Reviews

A Reader

This is an excellent book for students of sociology, family history, human development or other fields that explore family life as it exists in our world today. I especially appreciate how the author expands the reader's understanding of family forms from the common view of The Family as a mother/father, white, middle class, with two children "Ozzie and Harriot" stereotype to a more realistic understanding of the complexities of families in this country. I enjoyed reading stories that revealed how the factors of race, class, and gender effect families in our society. I also appreciated the inclusion of family stories that reveal the impact of historical contexts. For example, the stories from immigrants reveal how our society has historically valued labor as a means for profit over labor as a means to support families. I didn't find the text to be overly academic, but rather fascinating, accessible and informative.