Every Day I Love You More (Just Not Today)

January 1, 2001
In prose that's alternately breezy and pointed, Shulins offers a collection of brief anecdotal essays on plucking out Cupid's slings and arrows and replenishing the spirit of a lifelong marriage. Many of her musings focus on keeping love alive by resuscitating old memories of falling in love. Others concern the little ways that couples ease daily friction, whether through mental exercises (such as imagining what would happen if spouses locked in a frustrating pattern were to reverse roles) or by judiciously doling out a little white lie when one's partner asks, "Do I look paunchy?" Shulins does not dwell on the difficult (she mentions her multiple miscarriages and decision not to adopt children without elaboration), and often edges into gender stereotypes and romantic clich s in her effort to lightly poke fun at long-term lovers. Readers looking for substantial insights may find her advice trite and inadequate (e.g., she advises holding hands with one's spouse at the movies as a way to spice up a too-familiar sex life, and advises full-time working mothers who still do most of the housework to "get over it"), while those looking for a sweet-tempered celebration of marriage may recoil from apparent flashes of hostility that are sometimes barely concealed in the guise of humor. Still, less sentimental readers may appreciate this down-to-earth look at making a traditional marriage last.