10 books like BIFF for Coparent Communication

By Bill Eddy, Annette Burns, Kevin Chafin

Here are 10 books that authors have personally recommended if you like BIFF for Coparent Communication. Shepherd is a community of 7,000+ authors sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Mom's House, Dad's House

By Isolina Ricci,

Book cover of Mom's House, Dad's House

Ricci has been writing books for divorcing families for more than 20 years. This book is a classic that helps parents transition to shared parenting time, and parenting children in two homes. She writes supportively about the transition and adjustment to solo-parenting, with helpful suggestions and good illustrations. She followed up with two other books that I always recommend: Mom’s House, Dad’s House for Kids, and The Co-Parenting Toolkit. If I could only recommend one book for divorcing families, it would be one of Isolina Ricci’s.

Mom's House, Dad's House

By Isolina Ricci,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Mom's House, Dad's House as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Internationally renowned therapist, family expert and mediator Isolina Ricci, Ph.D. presents this definitive and newly updated guide to divorce and making shared custody work for parents and children.

The ground-breaking classic, Mom’s House, Dad’s House, has become the standard for two generations of divorcing parents, and includes examples, self-tests, checklists, tools, and guidelines to help separated moms and dads with the legal, emotional, and financial issues they will encounter as they work to create happy and stable homes.

This comprehensive guide looks anew at the needs of all family members with creative options and common-sense advice, including:

* The map…


Home Will Never Be the Same Again

By Carol R. Hughes, Bruce R. Fredenburg,

Book cover of Home Will Never Be the Same Again: A Guide for Adult Children of Gray Divorce

With the rise in so-called “gray divorces,” adult children of divorce find that they are just as wounded, betrayed, devastated and grief-stricken as young children. The myth that it is better to “wait to divorce till after the kids are grown” turns out to be just that, a myth. Adult children of divorce have been neglected in divorce books until recently, and this book is a resource geared toward their unique circumstances, helping them process and adjust to their parent's divorce. Divorcing parents would also benefit from reading it if they have adult children.

Home Will Never Be the Same Again

By Carol R. Hughes, Bruce R. Fredenburg,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Home Will Never Be the Same Again as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Adult children are often overlooked and forgotten when their parents divorce later in life, but in these pages they will find comfort and understanding for the many feelings, frustrations, and challenges they face.

For more than two decades, a silent revolution has been occurring and creating a seismic shift in the American family and families in other countries. It has been unfolding without much comment, and its effects are being felt across three to four generations: more couples are divorcing later in life. Called the “gray divorce revolution,” the cultural phenomenon describes couples who divorce after the age of 50.…


Collaborative Divorce

By Pauline H. Tesler, Peggy Thompson,

Book cover of Collaborative Divorce: The Revolutionary New Way to Restructure Your Family, Resolve Legal Issues, and Move on with Your Life

Collaborative Divorce is not new, it has been around since the mid-1990s. It is an alternative to litigation when mediation is not going to be enough support. The core of the approach is respect, honesty, transparency, and concern for the entire family. Mediation and Collaborative Divorce are both confidential processes that avoid litigation but there are significant advantages to Collaborative Divorce. Mediation is with one neutral facilitator (mediator) but in a Collaborative Divorce, each person has their own specially trained attorney to guide them through the divorce. In addition, each person has their own divorce coach (sometimes just one neutral coach), and often a child specialist brings the voice of the children to the negotiations. This book describes how Collaborative Divorce works and will help readers decided whether this would be a good process choice for them. The goal is to help families avoid court and avoid ongoing conflict. The…

Collaborative Divorce

By Pauline H. Tesler, Peggy Thompson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Collaborative Divorce as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

About half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce, and most of these divorces result in unnecessary collateral damage. Now there is a better way.

In Collaborative Divorce, Pauline Tesler and Peggy Thompson, two pioneers in the field who train collaborative professionals around the world, present the first complete, step-by-step explanation of the groundbreaking method that is revolutionizing the way couples end their marriages. Working with a team of caring specialists that includes two lawyers, two coaches, a financial consultant, and a child specialist (if necessary), you and your spouse focus on building a consensus that addresses…


Conscious Uncoupling

By Katherine Woodward Thomas,

Book cover of Conscious Uncoupling: 5 Steps to Living Happily Even After

My friend Katherine is a master at helping couples uncouple in kind and caring ways, filled with integrity. I recommend this book to all my clients who are ending their relationships, and many of my clients tell me how very helpful this book was to them. Breakups and divorces don’t have to be contentious, and even if just one of you reads this book, it will be incredibly helpful to you.

Conscious Uncoupling

By Katherine Woodward Thomas,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Conscious Uncoupling as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In 2014 a media storm erupted when Gwyneth Paltrow announced her separation from Chris Martin, describing it as a harmonious and mutual 'conscious uncoupling' and the term entered the world's vocabulary overnight. Coined and created by relationship expert Katherine Woodward Thomas, the expression 'conscious uncoupling' has become synonymous with a divorce where both partners accept that they each played a role in the breakup and, in particular, are looking to co-parent in a functional and healthy way in the future.

The Conscious Uncoupling 5 Step Process is designed to support separating couples through the thorny terrain of a breakup, helping…


Road to Divorce

By Lawrence Stone,

Book cover of Road to Divorce: England, 1530-1987

The leading authority on the history of divorce in England, Lawrence Stone’s brilliantly researched books are scholarly and highly readable. Road to Divorce is a frank and intimate account of the changing moral views of the past. It is utterly engrossing, full of drama, and leads readers to appreciate what a shocking prison marriage proved to be for hundreds of thousands of couples who, until 1857, needed an Act of Parliament to escape a bad marriage. Wives found it far harder than husbands to get a divorce as the legal obstacles were greater.

Road to Divorce

By Lawrence Stone,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Road to Divorce as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The first full study of a topic rich in historical interest and contemporary importance

Despite the infamous divorce of Henry VIII in 1529, subsequent moral, political, and religious attitudes ensured that until 1857, England was the only Protestant country with virtually no facilities for full divorce on the grounds of adultery, desertion, or cruelty. Using a mass of transcribed legal testimonies, taken from hitherto unexplored court records, Professor Stone uncovers the means by which laity and lawyers reformed the divorce laws, and offers astonishingly frank and intimate
insights into our ancestors' changing views about what makes a marriage.

Using personal…


The Truth about Children and Divorce

By Robert E. Emery,

Book cover of The Truth about Children and Divorce: Dealing with the Emotions So You and Your Children Can Thrive

If you have children, this book is a great follow-up to the parenting section of my book Peace after Divorce. Based on his professional experience as a therapist and researcher Dr. Emery shares important steps you can take to see that your children become well-adjusted and thrive. I’m impressed with the depth of his insights and feel that parents who read this book will be better able to navigate the tricky pitfalls of parenting through and after divorce. Stories of families illustrate his points and make this book an interesting read as well as a rich resource for those who want to minimize the negative impact of divorce on their children. This is the only book on my list not from a Christian perspective but it is good for parents.

The Truth about Children and Divorce

By Robert E. Emery,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Truth about Children and Divorce as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Nationally recognized expert Robert Emery applies his twenty-five years of experience as a researcher, therapist, and mediator to offer parents a new road map to divorce. Dr. Emery shows how our powerful emotions and the way we handle them shape how we divorce—and whether our children suffer or thrive in the long run. His message is hopeful, yet realistic—divorce is invariably painful, but parents can help promote their children’s resilience. With compassion and authority, Dr. Emery explains:

• Why it is so hard to really make divorce work
• How anger and fighting can keep people from really separating
•…


I Don't Want to Talk About It

By Jeanie Ransom, Kathryn Kunz Finney (illustrator),

Book cover of I Don't Want to Talk About It

I frequently use this child’s book to help young children cope with the divorce of their parents. Too often, I’ve found, parents don’t know how to talk to their children about divorce, and even more often, children don’t know how to talk to their parents about their feelings and what they may see as the end of their family. I Don’t Want to Talk About It follows a young girl who just doesn’t want to talk about her fears and painful feelings when she discovers that her parents are divorcing. However, with the gentle help of her parents, she is ultimately able to gain the courage to talk to them about what the future holds. The children I’ve counseled about divorce have responded well to this soft and empathic book. I highly recommend it.

I Don't Want to Talk About It

By Jeanie Ransom, Kathryn Kunz Finney (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked I Don't Want to Talk About It as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When a child's parents tell her they have decided to divorce, the last thing she wants to do is talk about it. Instead, she wants to roar as loud as a lion so she can't hear their painful words, or turn into a fish and hide her tears in the sea, or even become a bird and fly away. But with her mother and father's help, she starts to consider what life will be like after divorce and learns that although some things will change, many other things will remain the same. Most importantly, she realizes that although her parents…


The Ten Things to Do When Your Life Falls Apart

By Daphne Rose Kingma,

Book cover of The Ten Things to Do When Your Life Falls Apart: An Emotional and Spiritual Handbook

Psychotherapist Daphne Rose Kingma offers ten coping strategies to heal your heart when struggling with life’s devastations, including divorce. This is a soothing read if one is still raw with grief as it offers both hope and practical suggestions for moving through loss. Divorce can be a chance to heal old wounds and grow and this book offers a terrific start to that process.

The Ten Things to Do When Your Life Falls Apart

By Daphne Rose Kingma,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Ten Things to Do When Your Life Falls Apart as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Add layoffs, foreclosures, and skyrocketing health-care costs to the inevitable crises of every life, and you have today’s landscape. Amid these challenges, even those who thought they had solid coping skills feel that their center cannot hold as things fall apart. In her first book in many years, bestselling author Daphne Rose Kingma takes us on a path of emotional and spiritual healing, with particular attention to the complex and frequently overwhelming circumstances of our lives right now. The perfect combination of empathic friend, sage counselor, savvy problem solver, and even gallows humorist, Kingma looks straight into the predicaments so…


Parenting for a Digital Future

By Sonia Livingstone, Alicia Blum-Ross,

Book cover of Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears about Technology Shape Children's Lives

Many parents are worried about the amount of time their children spend with screens and look for ways and a deeper understanding of how to best manage children’s use of modern technologies. I loved how Livingstone and Blum-Ross brought together research, deep thinking, and applicable strategies in one coherent book volume. I learnt so much from reading this book, including how algorithms shape children’s games and social conversations. The most important takeaway for me was the vital need to support children’s rights in the digital age.

Parenting for a Digital Future

By Sonia Livingstone, Alicia Blum-Ross,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Parenting for a Digital Future as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the decades it takes to bring up a child, parents face challenges that are both helped and hindered by the fact that they are living through a period of unprecedented digital innovation. In Parenting for a Digital Future, Sonia Livingstone and Alicia Blum-Ross draw on extensive and diverse qualitative and quantitative research with a range of parents in the UK to reveal how digital technologies characterize parenting in late modernity, as parents
determine how to forge new territory with little precedent or support. They chart how parents often enact authority and values through digital technologies since "screen time," games,…


Light Years

By James Salter,

Book cover of Light Years

James Salter takes us deep into an exploration of the human condition and fragility of relationships with his narrative of the domestic life of an affluent American family with seemingly perfect lives on the surface. Through small details and observations of daily life, Salter brings us closely into their world—like voyeurs, we observe the fissures that simmer underneath their searches for happiness.  

We move through years of their lives as their marriage crumbles with the passage of time and the coexistence of love and betrayal.

Light Years

By James Salter,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Light Years as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Nedra and Viri are a married couple whose favoured life is centred around dinners, ingenious games with their children, enviable friends and near-perfect days passed skating on a frozen river or sunning on the beach. But fine cracks are beginning to spread through the shimmering surface of their life - flaws that will eventually mar the lovely picture beyond repair. Seductive, witty, tender and resonant, Light Years is an exquisite novel of lost lives and the elusiveness of happiness.


5 book lists we think you will like!

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