A Complete Guide to Dating, Mating, and Relating
The Ultimate Guidebook for Finding a Permanent Relationship
This dating guide draws upon classic notions as it advises single men on how to find a partner.
Peter Marzano addresses how difficult it is to find a suitable mate in the new era of dating in his handbook A Complete Guide to Dating, Mating, and Relating.
Though it addresses both men and women who are on a quest to find lasting love with people of the opposite sex, the guidebook devotes most of its attention to single men, delivering advice on how to find, approach, and develop relationships with good women looking for the same thing. In its short space, it examines the history of singles clubs as well as what the dating scenes of previous eras looked like.
The book also concentrates on changing cultural norms and the internet, noting how they have impacted dating. Advice on appropriate places to meet people, a guide to flirting, and suggestions for progressing through the levels of dating are also included. The book laments that awareness of sexually transmitted infections has taken the fun and playfulness out of dating, causing some to avoid relationships altogether.
There is some good advice here, especially for those who are new to the dating scene after a divorce or the death of a spouse. With lists of where to meet potential mates and ways to approach them depending on the situation, the book could be useful for people baffled by the new world of singledom.
Tones of pessimism and sexism detract from this helpfulness. The book’s view of women is that many pretend to be single to manipulate or coerce drinks out of men. It also declares that many married people go to clubs and social venues to get away from their spouses and says that single mothers are not attractive mates.
The book’s language is conversational, if sometimes awkward. Errors in spelling and grammar are a distraction. Outdated advice is frequent, relating to sharing home phone numbers and calling to arrange a date; texting and messaging aren’t addressed. Questionable advice—such plastic surgery to increase self-esteem—is also present. Beyond these problematic suggestions are bits of advice that are fine but not surprising, like making eye contact to signal interest. Disproportionate focus is given to STIs, but without helpful suggestions for confronting the declared resultant lack of fun in dating; here, the book mostly suggests that singles relax and not worry too much.
A guide for the modern man to find a true partner, The Complete Guide to Dating, Mating, and Relating proffers some solid, if dated, advice.
Reviewed by
Angela McQuay
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
