NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST, NPR, AND THE ECONOMIST
When Anne-Marie Slaughter accepted her dream job as the first female director of policy planning at the U.S. State Department in 2009, she was confident she could juggle the demands of her position in Washington, D.C., with the responsibilities of her family life in suburban New Jersey. Her husband and two young sons encouraged her to pursue the job; she had a tremendously supportive boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and she had been moving up on a high-profile career track since law school. But then life intervened. Parenting needs caused her to make a decision to leave the State Department and return to an academic career that gave her more time for her family.
The reactions to her choice to leave Washington because of her kids led her to question the feminist narrative she grew up with. Her subsequent article for The Atlantic, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” created a firestorm, sparked intense national debate, and became one of the most-read pieces in the magazine’s history.
Since that time, Anne-Marie Slaughter has pushed forward, breaking free of her long-standing assumptions about work, life, and family. Though many solutions have been proposed for how women can continue to break the glass ceiling or rise above the “motherhood penalty,” women at the top and the bottom of the income scale are further and further apart.
Now, in her refreshing and forthright voice, Anne-Marie Slaughter returns with her vision for what true equality between men and women really means, and how we can get there. She uncovers the missing piece of the puzzle, presenting a new focus that can reunite the women’s movement and provide a common banner under which both men and women can advance and thrive.
With moving personal stories, individual action plans, and a broad outline for change, Anne-Marie Slaughter reveals a future in which all of us can finally finish the business of equality for women and men, work and family.
“I’m confident that you will be left with Anne-Marie’s hope and optimism that we can change our points of view and policies so that both men and women can fully participate in their families and use their full talents on the job.”—Hillary Rodham Clinton
NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST, NPR, AND THE ECONOMIST
When Anne-Marie Slaughter accepted her dream job as the first female director of policy planning at the U.S. State Department in 2009, she was confident she could juggle the demands of her position in Washington, D.C., with the responsibilities of her family life in suburban New Jersey. Her husband and two young sons encouraged her to pursue the job; she had a tremendously supportive boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; and she had been moving up on a high-profile career track since law school. But then life intervened. Parenting needs caused her to make a decision to leave the State Department and return to an academic career that gave her more time for her family.
The reactions to her choice to leave Washington because of her kids led her to question the feminist narrative she grew up with. Her subsequent article for The Atlantic, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” created a firestorm, sparked intense national debate, and became one of the most-read pieces in the magazine’s history.
Since that time, Anne-Marie Slaughter has pushed forward, breaking free of her long-standing assumptions about work, life, and family. Though many solutions have been proposed for how women can continue to break the glass ceiling or rise above the “motherhood penalty,” women at the top and the bottom of the income scale are further and further apart.
Now, in her refreshing and forthright voice, Anne-Marie Slaughter returns with her vision for what true equality between men and women really means, and how we can get there. She uncovers the missing piece of the puzzle, presenting a new focus that can reunite the women’s movement and provide a common banner under which both men and women can advance and thrive.
With moving personal stories, individual action plans, and a broad outline for change, Anne-Marie Slaughter reveals a future in which all of us can finally finish the business of equality for women and men, work and family.
“I’m confident that you will be left with Anne-Marie’s hope and optimism that we can change our points of view and policies so that both men and women can fully participate in their families and use their full talents on the job.”—Hillary Rodham Clinton
Reviews-
-
August 24, 2015
As this heartfelt book relates, when the author (The Idea That Is America) left her Princeton University professorship in 2009 to work on policy for then–Secretary of State Clinton, her sons were 10 and 12. Slaughter could only get home on weekends, and before long she found her children were suffering from her absences. Her conflicted feelings resulted in her much-read Atlantic piece, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” which she expands here. “Lean in too far without a counterweight... and you will tip over,” Slaughter warns. As she explains, her tipping point led her not only to leave D.C. but also to more widely examine the challenges of caregiving in the U.S. Slaughter also takes a fresh and informative look at recent advances made by feminists, finding that though much has changed since the women’s movement came to prominence, the movement is still “only halfway home.” She provides concrete steps for the remaining journey, concluding that until society learns to value care (of children and the elderly) as much as competition, there will never be true gender equality, in the workplace or elsewhere. If heeded by Americans, her thoughtful analysis could cause a sea change in how they value their jobs and one another. Agent: Will Lippincott, Lippincott Massie McQuilkin. -
August 15, 2015
One woman's vision on how to create gender equality for men and women. After New America Foundation CEO Slaughter's (The Idea that Is America, 2008, etc.) 2012 Atlantic article, "Why Women Still Can't Have it All," created a whirlwind of debate on both sides of the issue, she realized the "fifty-year-old conversation about what true equality between men and women really means" was still open to definition. In this comprehensive analysis, the author interweaves thoughts about the necessity of equal time at home and at work with her personal story of juggling a career as the first female director of policy planning, reporting directly to then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and her deep desire and need to be at home with her sons. Slaughter skillfully breaks down old myths and offers useful advice on how, with slight twists and tweaks, the old theories can be reinvented into methods that are readily accessible and actionable. With strong research, the author outlines the inherent problems that still exist in the workplace, which create an unequal atmosphere, particularly for women, who are often seen as "giving up" a career if they elect to spend more time with their children. She offers solid advice on how these disparities can be changed, allowing workers to have more flexibility. Her advice includes using at-home independent contractors and freelancers, using OpenWork ("a platform and movement...a way of working, a spirit and set of values that animates a particular workplace"), and focusing on results rather than on the steps to get there. Although much of this is common sense, the fact that men and women do not yet share equal pay for equal work or receive fair treatment in regard to time off for child care only underlines the need for this kind of ongoing conversation, a discussion over which Slaughter eloquently presides. Informative guidance on how men and women can come together in the workforce and at home.COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
-
September 1, 2015
In 2012, the Atlantic published a now famous cover article "Why Women Still Can't Have It All." Slaughter has expanded that article into a well-written and -researched book, further outlining the corporate and societal expectations that result in ever-increasing professional and family demands. Slaughter begins by explaining why she felt compelled to leave a coveted position at the U.S. State Department to return to her family and teaching career at Princeton University and how others reacted to that move. The juxtaposition of her ambition and feminist ideals with the realities of marriage and child rearing (and the need for sleep) has led her to call for more focus "work/life fit" and less on requiring long hours on the job for career advancement. The author states the radical idea that parenting and caregiving should be as respected as any other professional role. While she's most likely preaching to the choir, the joint themes of working smarter not harder and giving caregiving its due respect will resonate with a wide audience. VERDICT Based on the popularity of the article, this book will be in strong demand. Recommended for all libraries. [See Editors' Picks, p. 30; Prepub Alert, 3/30/15.]--Susan Hurst, Miami Univ. Libs., Oxford, OH
Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
-
April 15, 2015
Within four days of its publication in the July/August 2012 issue of the Atlantic, Slaughter's "Why Women Still Can't Have It All" became the most-read feature in the magazine's history, and Slaughter emerged as a major voice in the debate about women in the workplace. Instead of having it all, she wants us to strive for work-life balance and gender equality in the office and at home. With a 75,000-copy first printing and an eight-city tour.
Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Slate "An eye-opening call to action from someone who rethought the whole notion of 'having it all,' Unfinished Business could change how many of us approach our most important business: living."--People "Another clarion call from [Anne-Marie] Slaughter . . . Her case for revaluing and better compensating caregiving is compelling. . . . Slaughter skillfully exposes half-truths in the workplace [and] makes it a point in her book to speak beyond the elite."--Jill Abramson, The Washington Post "Slaughter argues that the current punishing route to professional success--or simply to survival--is stalling gender progress. . . . [Her] important contribution is to use her considerable platform to call for cultural change, itself profoundly necessary. The book's audience, then, shouldn't just be worried womankind. It should go right into the hands of (still mostly male) decision-makers."--Los Angeles Times "Slaughter should be applauded for devising a 'new vocabulary' to identify a broad, misclassified social phenomenon. And she is razor-sharp on outlining the cultural shifts necessary to give caregiving its due. . . . By putting these issues on the agenda, Slaughter has already taken an essential first step."--The Economist "A meaningful correction to Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In . . . For Slaughter, it is organizations--not women--that need to change."
- Financial Times "A brilliant summary of the problem with work, told well and with a quiet, righteous anger . . . Anecdotes from [Slaughter's] own life and others are deftly interwoven with research, making Unfinished Business a compelling and lively read."
- Melinda Gates "Anne-Marie Slaughter insists that we ask ourselves hard questions. After reading Unfinished Business, I'm confident that you will be left with Anne-Marie's hope and optimism that we can change our points of view and policies so that both men and women can fully participate in their families and use their full talents on the job."--Hillary Rodham Clinton "Anne-Marie Slaughter's gift for illuminating large issues through everyday human stories is what makes this book so necessary for anyone who wants to be both a leader at work and a fully engaged parent at home."--Arianna Huffington "With breathtaking honesty Anne-Marie Slaughter tackles the challenges of often conflicted working mothers and working fathers and shows how we can craft the lives we want for our families. Her book will spark a national conversation about what we need to do to live saner, more satisfying lives."--Katie Couric "Unfinished Business is an important read for women and men alike. Slaughter shows us that when people share equally the responsibility of caring for others, they are healthier, economies prosper, and both women and men are freer to lead the lives they want."
- Atul Gawande "Important. Revolutionary. Unfinished Business insists we recognize a simple truth: Human life requires space for caring for others--during childhood, illness, infirmity, and everything in between. And societies that consider caring as simply a 'women's issue' are fundamentally broken and unhappy. Anne-Marie Slaughter has written the instruction manual for our next cultural transformation."
- Eric Schmidt "Anne-Marie Slaughter has given us a blueprint for the future in which women truly have freedom to choose. They can be leaders at the workplace, and they can be leaders at home, at any point in their lives. Unfinished Business paves the way for women and men to be equal partners in America's cultural and economic success by accessing 100 percent of our brainpower and creativity."--Kay Bailey Hutchison "Unfinished Business sets out a powerful vision not only for gender equality, but for the future of work. Anne-Marie Slaughter presents an important approach to tapping into the talent pool of gifted, educated women who hav
