Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both [AUDIOBOOK] [CD] [UNABRIDGED] (Audio CD)

by Laura Sessions Stepp (Author), Ellen Archer (Reader)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Riveting."
-Patricia Cornwell, New York Times bestselling author

"On target and thought provoking."
-Atlantic Monthly

"Educational-and almost always shocking...ought to come with a parental advisory."
-St. Louis Post Dispatch

"Stepp's work is remarkable."
-The Baltimore Sun

"Required reading for all young women-and their parents."
-Hilda Hutcherson, M.D., author of What Your Mother Never Told You About Sex --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
An eye-opening examination of the hookup culture, seen through the personal experiences of high school and college-age women who confront the hard lessons of dating, love, and sex. Unabridged. 8 CDs.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Tantor Media; Unabridged edition (March 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400103991
• ISBN-13: 978-1400103997
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,165,544 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very accurate view on today's young women, October 1, 2008

By	Delirium (New York City, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both (Paperback)

I can't stress enough how accurate a portrayal this book is of most modern young women. As a 28-year old woman who has just finished medical school but never had a lasting relationship because I always felt my studies should come first (and so I've been told all my life), this book hit very close to home.

I always figured it was something wrong with ME. I wasn't able to take a step back and gain broader perspective on the messages that have surrounded me almost from birth. No, I'm not trying to sound like a victim, but it's crucial to know how many seemingly small factors can come together to form a larger problem.

And I know it's not just me... For example, my best friend (who recently got her MBA) was sitting a bar and chatting with this guy she was really interested in, both physically & mentally, for hours. He hinted that she should come back to his apartment with her, but she didn't take the hints (or says she didn't). The next day she came to me, asking, "Why couldn't I just have sex with him??" There is a lot of confusion in young women today... Not only in terms of balancing academic/career/extracurricular goals with personal relationships, but also the pressure to BE overtly sexual and treat men disposably while at the same time really desiring a deeper emotional connection.

I think Stepp is right... Some of us, through a combination of factors, aren't equipped with the tools (due to lack of experience, and being actively influenced away from experience with messages like "There'll be plenty of time to date after <college, grad school, whatever> is done.") to adequately integrate a loving relationship into our lives. There are quotes in this book, much like the above, that I have heard since early adolescence. There are other lines that I have used almost verbatim as excuses to guys as to why I couldn't have an emotionally vulnerable relationship with them.

I can see how many people will think I'm over-exaggerating. Or how Stepp is overstating either the prevalence of the hooking up culture or the factors that contribute to it. But I promise you, she's not. Of course, what you read won't apply to ALL young women (there are no universalities), but for a great many of us, it's completely accurate. I can't tell you how helpful it's been to me to realize that I'm not alone in this.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must read for all!!, January 3, 2009

By	Stephen Akinduro (Columbus, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both (Paperback)

I must admit that this book was sometimes very hard for me to read, because it hit way to close to home. I am a 37 year old black male and I have definitely seen a change in the landscape when it comes to relationships in today's culture. I was brought up overseas and in a home and culture where a man was supposed to treat a woman with respect and dignity, get to know her and know her passions and dreams before taking her to bed. When I came back to the United States in 1994, I realized that I was totally unprepared for the casual nature of sex and the way many women basically treated men as boy-toys who were just there to fulfill a need at that particular time. This is not to say thjat all women are like this, as the book eloquently shows, but most women are totally UNPREPARED and shocked when they do meet someone who shows chivarly and is old fashioned in their values and wants to actually get to know them. It is almost always assumed that to want to know someone is to try and "tie them down" and prevent them from being able to be emotionally free from you at any time. But this is the irony, and "unhooked" tells the story so well, being unhooked does not actually prevent emotional bondage, it actually increases sadness and creates a level of emptiness that surfaces later on.

This is a MUST for all especially if you are concerned about the way sex has become such a casual entity in our society. THere is enough blame to go around and is not simply a matter of "these kids don't have moral". Read the book and be sobered and humbled....

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read, August 15, 2008

By	L. Benishek "Lebenny" (Virginia) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both (Paperback)

I believe that this is a book that most modern young women will be able to identify with. What must be kept in mind while reading it is that is it not written by a psychologist but rather a journalist. Sessions Stepp does indeed cite journal articles, professionals, and research to supplement her findings thus giving more scientific validity to her own research. It's a worthwhile read whether you're a parent trying to understand your daughter in the context of the hook-up culture or a young woman confused by the hookup culture yourself.