Going Solo: If we can afford to live alone, we do

Kathryn Hughes

The Guardian, May 3 — “Klinenberg argues that we need to stop worrying about what it all means and concentrate instead on making it work. The first, and most profound, thing to do is acknowledge that solo living is actually a fantasy underwritten by the very real presence of the family, communities and the state.”

Why Are So Many Americans Single?

Nathan Heller

The New Yorker, Apr 16 — The New Yorker asks: Why are so many Americans living by themselves? A feature review with additional discussions of new books by Sherry Turkle and Richard Sennett.

Homeward Bound: The Rise of Multigenerational and One-Person Households

Garret Keizer

The New York Times, Mar 2 — So these two sociologists go into a bar and the man says to the woman, “What have you been up to?” “I’ve been studying what I call ‘accordion families,’” she says. “Right now something like three and a half million American parents are sharing a house with adult kids who’ve either come back home or never left.”

Going Solo

Kevin Hartnett

Christian Science Monitor, Feb 24 — In 1935 General Electric sponsored a competition to design a dream house for the ideal American family. The parents in this ideal family were known as “Mr. and Mrs. Bliss.” He was an engineer. She was a housewife. They had two kids – a boy and a girl. The contest asked Americans to submit ideas for all the ways that electricity could be used to improve their daily lives.

Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone

Suki Casanave

The Washington Post, Feb 24 — “Going Solo” examines a dramatic demographic trend: the startling increase in adults living alone. Along the way, the book navigates some rough and complicated emotional terrain, finding its way straight to questions of the heart, to the universal yearning for happiness and purpose. In the end, despite its title, “Going Solo” is really about living better together — for all of us, single or not.