When Marla Paul returned to a Chicago suburb after a 5-year stint in Dallas, she found herself without the true core of friends she once had there or the close circle of pals she enjoyed while in Dallas. Bewildered and frustrated at how hard it was to make new friends, Paul felt like the only one not invited to the party.
So she wrote about her experience one Sunday in the Chicago Tribune, and later in Ladies' Home Journal. But she was embarrassed. She thought she was the only one having a hard time. Was Paul alone? Hardly. The response was overwhelming.
Women across the country began contacting Paul with sentiments and experiences echoing her own. Using feedback from hundreds of women, as well as interviews with top friendship experts, she began writing a regular column on women's friendships for the Chicago Tribune, casting light on this previously silent problem of epic proportions.
Now, she brings her culled wisdom to women everywhere, proving to them that they are in friendly company. Focusing on major life events that can crack and even shear a friendship-- having (or not having) children, becoming divorced or widowed, moving, leaving the office to stay home-- Paul charts a path to find new friends and community. Other chapters include finessing the inevitable challenges to friendship, like conflict, jealousy, and feeling neglected; creating a neighborhood community; finding Internet pals; and closing the generation gap on friendship. She also explores the behaviors that wreck a friendship and the ones that strengthen it.
With creative and solid tried-and-true tips for finding, making, and keeping friends, Paul shows us that laughter and friendship needn't end just because we aren't kids anymore.
So she wrote about her experience one Sunday in the Chicago Tribune, and later in Ladies' Home Journal. But she was embarrassed. She thought she was the only one having a hard time. Was Paul alone? Hardly. The response was overwhelming.
Women across the country began contacting Paul with sentiments and experiences echoing her own. Using feedback from hundreds of women, as well as interviews with top friendship experts, she began writing a regular column on women's friendships for the Chicago Tribune, casting light on this previously silent problem of epic proportions.
Now, she brings her culled wisdom to women everywhere, proving to them that they are in friendly company. Focusing on major life events that can crack and even shear a friendship-- having (or not having) children, becoming divorced or widowed, moving, leaving the office to stay home-- Paul charts a path to find new friends and community. Other chapters include finessing the inevitable challenges to friendship, like conflict, jealousy, and feeling neglected; creating a neighborhood community; finding Internet pals; and closing the generation gap on friendship. She also explores the behaviors that wreck a friendship and the ones that strengthen it.
With creative and solid tried-and-true tips for finding, making, and keeping friends, Paul shows us that laughter and friendship needn't end just because we aren't kids anymore.
