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Stepmothers/Older Mothers: an Anthropologist on Why We Do What We Do When We Do It

I asked Kermyt G. Anderson, an evolutionary biologist and anthropologist, to weigh in on the topic of delayed childbearing. You know, older mothers! He makes the interesting point that in stepfamilies, we’re often pushing our reproductive careers to the max, since we might be repartnering a little later in life post-divorce (or breakup), and then wanting to have a child or a family.

Sound familiar?

Check out KG’s guest post on my psychologytoday.com blog. You might check out his wonderful new book, too: Fatherhood: Evolution and Human Paternal Behavior

Tags: blended family, divorce, evolutionary biology, family, human behavioral ecology, remarriage, remarriage with children, stepchildren, stepmother, stepmother advice, stepmother support

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 25th, 2010 at 2:21 pm and is filed under guest bloggers, misc. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

One Response to “Stepmothers/Older Mothers: an Anthropologist on Why We Do What We Do When We Do It”

Da Wiznitch Says:
May 25th, 2010 at 4:50 pm
Wow, she looks even older than me.

Reviews

“Wednesday Martin presents a refreshingly realistic—and reassuring—look at what it means to be a stepmother today. Ultimately, this book gives women in this often thankless role a reason to get over the guilt and get on with the nuts and bolts of surviving and thriving in a so-called blended family.”
—Paula Derrow, editor of Behind the Bedroom Door: Getting It, Giving It, Loving It, Missing It and articles director, Self magazine
“Absolutely fantastic—will touch a nerve with every single stepmom out there. A wonderful, intelligent, insightful book that will help stepmothers breathe a sigh of relief that they have been heard…As a therapist who works with stepfamilies, and an educator of therapists, I highly recommend this book to all as a very valuable resource.”
—Five-Star Review, Susan Davis Swanson, Director, The Stepfamily Center, Beverly Hills, CA
“Hurrah for stepmothers! Your moment has arrived. Stepmonster is a passionately argued, well-researched, unsentimental, whole-hearted defense of stepmothers. It’s a compelling read for anyone who has ever been been married to, or been parented by a stepmom. And for everyone else, too. You’ll argue with Wednesday Martin, you may even roll your eyes, but by the time you finish the book, you’ll have gained a first rate, truly useful understanding of stepmothers’ perspectives and feelings.”
—Janna Malamud Smith, author of A Potent Spell: Mother Love and the Power of Fear
“I LOVE it. She’s writing about you, me, just about everyone of us in Stepland.”

“I swear this woman knows all of us—and has listened to every one of our stories. She is on the side of stepmothers and is very good at showing how we cope with the world we are in.”

“I don’t want to wait for the May pub. date!”

“I only wish I’d found this book 10 years ago. She hits home on SO MANY LEVELS. My recommendation is that ANY and EVERY stepmom should read this. And this should also be required when couples are going for a marriage license. ‘Does he have kids from a previous marriage? Then read the book first. Then we’ll give you a marriage license.’”
source: What real stepmothers are saying about Stepmonster from steptogether.org
“Nothing short of amazing... Stepmonster is truly unique because it explores stepparenting from the stepmother’s perspective and offers solid research, facts, and data. I’m sure I won’t be the first or the last to say Thank You for writing this book.”
—Five-Star Review, Brenda Ockun, President and Publisher, http://www.stepmommag.com

Wednesday Martin

Stepmothers/Older Mothers: an Anthropologist on Why We Do What We Do When We Do It

One Response to “Stepmothers/Older Mothers: an Anthropologist on Why We Do What We Do When We Do It”

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