Sacred Cows

The Truth about Divorce and Marriage

By: Danielle Teller MD, Astro Teller PhD

Narrated by: Kevin Young

Drs. Astro and Danielle Teller know better than most that finding the right partner in life doesn't always happen the first time around. Through their own divorces they learned how widely held cultural assumptions and misinformation that nobody thinks to question - what they refer to as "sacred cows" - create unnecessary heartache for people who are already suffering through a terrible time. Do you think, for example, that the divorce rate in the United States is rising? Or that children are harmed by divorce? Most people do, but it turns out that neither of these notions is supported by the data.

Combining the rigor that has established them as leaders in their respective fields along with a dose of good-natured humor, the Tellers ask listeners to take a fresh look at seven common sacred cows: the Holy Cow, the Expert Cow, the Selfish Cow, the Defective Cow, the Innocent Victim Cow, the One True Cow, and the Other Cow. This is not an audiobook that is "for" marriage or "for" divorce, but "for" the freedom to decide how to live most honestly and happily either as part of a couple or a single person.

In the same way that Esther Perel's best-selling Mating in Captivity gave couples a fresh perspective on their married life, so Sacred Cows invites listeners to question assumptions and conventional wisdom. It offers a smart, insightful, and sympathetic view for those in a marital crisis, marriage counsellors, or anyone looking to gain a fresh perspective on one of our most cherished and misunderstood institutions.

©2014 Danielle and Astro Teller (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Wow, great insight!

To the point
Sometimes it comes across a bit sarcastic but excellent analysis of social understanding or misunderstanding of the marriage and divorce.

Spot on!

Admittedly, there were some really cheesy puns about cows throughout this book, but like a cow’s spots, it was on! Basically, everything that has been going through my mind about my marriage and impending divorce was covered. It is honest, informative, non-judgmental, relatable, and just encouraging. It does not encourage divorce, but it is encouraging to me, who is going through one. It won’t help your marriage, but it’ll help you to understand why you feel the way you do about your marriage. I had been feeling so much pain and guilt about separating from my husband of 14 years, but this book helped me to tip some of the sacred cows that have been in my way. Meaning, I can now accept that it’s okay and mooove on. (Sorry) But, for real, divorce is hell, and this book helped me a lot!

What should be common sense, cutely packaged

The big take away from this book, in my view, is that no self-help volume filled with generalities or studies involving statistics can possibly be all that useful to individual cases of marriages on the rocks. Everybody has completely unique circumstances, even though some themes may be common. I believe the authors would agree with me, if I summed it up by saying "here is a list of things NOT to think about when considering a divorce." If you find yourself at that point in your life, this quick read may very well help clear your mind.

Twilight level bad

This is one of the worst books I’ve ever read. I kept waiting for evidence based information or some credentials from the authors. It’s just dudes ranting. Even reading a summary of this book would be a waste of time.