From Library Journal
This book provides quick information on contemporary family lifestyles in over 600 entries covering a wide range of subjects. Unfortunately, there are some surprising omissions. Thus, because of an apparent absence of any organizing principle for choice of subjects or rationale for the space devoted to each item, we find an entry for fast food impact on families but none for gay, lesbian, or homosexuality impact. Some entries are given a few pages while others of apparently equal importance get only a few lines. The absence of systematic cross-referencing within the text leads to a repetition of the same ideas under different headings. It also leads to the same issue appearing under multiple heads, i.e., entries for domestic violence, spouse abuse, and wife battering examine the same subject. While the lay reader will find this reference provides quick access to a wide range of family issues, the book's drawbacks will give librarians cause for concern.
- John M. Haynes, Haynes Mediation Assocs . , Huntington, N.Y.Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
About the Author
Margaret DiCanio, a freelance writer, received a Ph.D. from the University of Florida and an M.A. from Boston University. She taught Sociology at the University of Minnesota, the University of Tennessee Medical School, and the University of Memphis. Subsequent to teaching, she served as the director of community programs for a Memphis mental health center, and as the executive director of two Massachusetts mental health centers. During her 13-year career as a freelance writer, DiCanio has written 9 nonfiction books, the most recent is Encyclopedia of American Activism: The 1960's to the Present (ABC_CLIO, 1998). She writes profiles for the English-language edition of Nor Or, an Armenian weekly newspaper. DiCanio also writes mystery stories. A member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA), the National Association of Science Writers (NASW), and the Mystery Writers of America (MWA), she has served as the president, treasurer, and newsletter editor for the New England Chapter of MWA.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
