Best 20 Relationship Books To Help You Save Your Marriage







1- The 5 Love Languages 

by Gary Chapman, 1992





The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts: Gary Chapman ...



Falling in love is easy. Staying in love—that’s the challenge. How can you keep your relationship fresh and growing amid the demands, conflicts, and just plain boredom of everyday life?

In the #1 New York Times bestseller The 5 Love Languages, you’ll discover the secret that has transformed millions of relationships worldwide. Whether your relationship is flourishing or failing, Dr. Gary Chapman’s proven approach to showing and receiving love will help you experience deeper and richer levels of intimacy with your partner—starting today.

The 5 Love Languages is as practical as it is insightful. Updated to reflect the complexities of relationships today, this new edition reveals intrinsic truths and applies relevant, actionable wisdom in ways that work.



2- Getting the Love You Want : A Guide for Couples 
by Harville Hendrix Ph.D, 1988




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Originally published in 1988, Getting the Love You Want has helped millions of couples attain more loving, supportive, and deeply satisfying relationships. The 20th anniversary edition contains extensive revisions to this groundbreaking book, with a new chapter, new exercises, and a foreword detailing Dr. Hendrix’s updated philosophy for eliminating all negativity from couples’ daily interactions, allowing readers of the 2008 edition to benefit from his ongoing discoveries during his last two decades of work.

Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., in partnership with his wife, Helen LaKelly Hunt, PhD., originated Imago Relationship Therapy, a unique healing process for couples, prospective couples, and parents. Together they have more than thirty years’ experience as educators and therapists and their work has been translated into more than 50 languages, with Imago practiced by two thousand therapists worldwide. Harville and Helen have six children and live in New York and New Mexico.


Review: 

“Hendrix provides much insight into how spouses can mature through one another.” ―Booklist

“Harville Hendrix offers the best program I've seen for using the love/hate energy in marriage to help a couple heal one another and to become whole together.” ―T. George Harris, Editor-in-Chief, American Health

“I know of no better guide for couples who genuinely desire a maturing relationship.” ―M. Scott Peck, author of The Road Less Traveled


3- Couple Skills: Making Your Relationship Work 

By Matthew McKay PhD and Patrick Fanning, 1994




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 Love takes work, but, when it comes to relationships, it pays to work smarter. Couple Skills, Second Edition, revised and updated from the therapist-recommended classic, will show you how to work smarter in your relationship. You'll learn to improve communication, cope better with problems, and resolve conflicts with the one you love in healthy and creative ways. Each chapter teaches you an essential skill that supports greater relationship satisfaction and deeper intimacy. 


4- Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus 

by John Gray, 1992



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Based on years of successful counseling of couples and individuals, Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus has helped millions of couples transform their relationships. Now viewed as a modern classic, this phenomenal book has helped men and women realize how different they can be in their communication styles, their emotional needs, and their modes of behavior ; and offers the secrets of communicating without conflicts, allowing couples to give intimacy every chance to grow.
  

Review: 

“Gray offers a Berlitz of the heart, a translation of that foreign language your spouse is speaking. And hearing.” (USA Today)


5- The 100 Simple Secrets of Great Relationships 

by David Niven, Ph.D., 2000




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What are the essential qualities of a great relationship? What do people in healthy and happy relationships do differently? Scientists and academics have spent entire careers investigating the nature of relationships, dating, and marriage, yet their findings are inaccessible to ordinary people, hidden in obscure journals read only by other academics. Now the bestselling author of the 100 Simple Secrets series has collected the most current and significant data from more than a thousand studies on relationships and spells out the key findings in plain English. The advice is not based on one person's unique experiences or opinions, but offers for the first time the research of noted scientists studying the lives and loves of average Americans. Each of the findings is accompanied by a true story that shows the results in action.



6- Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man 

by Steve Harvey, 2009





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Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man is an invaluable self-help book that can empower women everywhere to take control of their relationships. The host of a top-rated radio show listened to by millions daily—and of cable TV’s The Steve Harvey Project—Harvey knows what men really think about love, intimacy, and commitment. In Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man, the author, media personality, and stand-up comedian gets serious, sharing his wealth of knowledge, insight, and no-nonsense advice for every good woman who wants to find a good man or make her current love last.

Review: 

“Harvey’s must-have guide to unlocking the male mind, understanding his game, anticipating his moves and countering with unstoppable offense and defense.” (Los Angeles Sentinel)

“Women should listen to Steve Harvey when it comes to what a good man is about. Steve Harvey dispenses a lot of fabulous information about men. It’s more than the average man will usually tell you. Steve Harvey will give it up.” (Aretha Franklin)

“A thorough, witty guide to the modern man....those in need of tough (but ticklish) love advice should check it out (especially the hysterical last-chapter Q&A).” (Publishers Weekly)



7- Love Is Never Enough: How Couples Can Overcome Misunderstanding 

by Aaron T. Beck M.D., 2010




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With eloquence and accessibility, Dr. Aaron T. Beck analyzes the actual dialogue of troubled couples to illuminate the most common problems in marriage--the power of negative thinking, disillusionment, rigid rules and expectations, and miscommunication.

Review: 

“Beck is the anointed father of cognitive therapy . . . In Love Is Never Enough, [he] goes back to the well of distorted thoughts and says they’re also the source of most relationship problems.” (Philadelphia Magazine)

“It’s practical. It’s wise. It’s down to earth. It should help many marriages.” (Dr. Helen Singer Kaplan)


“Overflowing with insights, advice and exercises which add up to the solutions that may save a failing marriage or make a good relationship better.” (Dennis Wholey, author of The Courage to Change)





8- The Soulmate Experience: A Practical Guide to Creating Extraordinary Relationships 

by Mali Apple and Joe Dunn, 2011





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The Soulmate Experience has helped thousands of people around the world create relationships that are intimately connected on every level: emotional, physical, and spiritual. This practical guide to love and intimacy is really two books in one:Part 1 gives singles and couples tools and techniques for creating a truly extraordinary relationship. Chapters like Loving Your Body, Reducing Your Baggage, and Raising Your Soulmate Potential will help you identify and let go of anything that might be keeping you from experiencing true and lasting love. Part 2 shares the secrets for continually creating an environment for your relationship to thrive. Chapters like Turning Expectations into Invitations, Transforming the Energy of Jealousy, and Exploring the Edges show you how to approach anything as an opportunity for deeper connection. And Playing Leapfrog explores how to lovingly inspire each other to reach your full potential in every area of your lives. Whether you’re single and searching for your soulmate, or want more excitement and connection in the relationship you already have, these groundbreaking ideas--and the inspiring stories of real people putting them into practice--will open you up to a whole new world of possibilities. Because The Soulmate Experience is more than a book. It’s a great way of living life.
  
Review: 

"What a beautiful book! Written without the trappings of spiritual or psychological jargon, The Soulmate Experience is a user-friendly guide to a completely authentic way of being. In a simple and personal way, Mali and Joe usher you into a new paradigm of relating where the truth of unconditional love can actually be known and lived." ~Tobin Giblin, author of The Art of Mindful Living
  
"No matter how many other relationship books you've read, this is the book that gives you the tools to attract a soulmate, and find solutions to the challenges of relationship that will allow that soulmate experience to blossom." ~Joanne Sprott

"Reading this book is like listening to your best friend who knows you better than anyone else and loves you unconditionally." ~Laura Alavosus


"I just need to keep reading this book over and over again. It's made a huge difference in meeting new people." ~Deborah Newton


9- Love, Sex and Staying Warm: Creating a Vital Relationship 

By Neil Rosenthal, 2014





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Love, Sex and Staying Warm: Creating A Vital Relationship, is an instruction manual on how to keep your relationship close, connected and intimate. Cracks and crevices can start to appear in even very close relationships.

And if you’re unable to spot them, a relationship that was once rock solid will slowly begin to grow less connected and intimate. It’s knowing how to spot the cracks, or how to stop them, that’s the secret behind maintaining a successful intimate relationship over time.



10- The Relationship Cure: A 5 Step Guide to Strengthening Your Marriage, Family, and Friendships 

By John Gottman, 2001




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Gottman provides the tools you need to make your relationships thrive. In The Relationship Cure, Dr. Gottman:

- Reveals the key elements of healthy relationships, emphasizing the importance of what he calls “emotional connection”
- Introduces the powerful new concept of the emotional “bid,” the fundamental unit of emotional connection
- Provides remarkably empowering tools for improving the way you bid for emotional connection and how you respond to others’ bids
- And more!

Packed with fascinating questionnaires and exercises developed in his therapy, The Relationship Cure offers a simple but profound program that will fundamentally transform the quality of all of the relationships in your life.


Review: 

"John Gottman is our leading explorer of the inner world of relationships. In The Relationship Cure, he has found gold once again. This book shows how the simplest, nearly invisible gestures of care and attention hold the key to successful relationships with those we love and work with."-- William J. Doherty, Ph.D., author of Take Back Your Marriage: Sticking Together in a World That Pulls Us Apart

"This is the best book on relationships I have ever read -- a truly impressive tour-de-force. John Gottman has discovered the Rosetta Stone of relationships. He has decoded the subtle secrets contained in our moment-to-moment communications. By introducing the simple yet amazingly powerful concept of the "bid," he provides a remarkable set of tools for relationship repair. By the middle of the second chapter, you're likely to say to yourself, "Oh, so that's what's happening in my relationship with my partner (or colleague, boss, or sister), and now I know what to do about it."-- Daniel B. Wile, Ph.D., author of After the Fight: Using Your Disagreements to Build a Stronger Relationship





11- 75 Habits for a Happy Marriage: Marriage Advice to Recharge and Reconnect Every Day 
by Ashley Davis Bush, 2013





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The stresses and strains of life can unravel the tight bond you once had with your spouse, leaving you feeling lonely, frustrated, and unfulfilled. 75 Habits for a Happy Marriage shows you how to restore that intimate and joyful union with simple, positive actions that bring you closer together throughout the day.

Designed by authors Ashley and Daniel Bush, each activity takes only a matter of minutes and gives you a moment to set aside the demands of your career, finances, and chores in order to focus on what matters most--your love. When practiced consistently, these powerful behaviors will become lifelong customs and an important part of your daily routine, ensuring that your relationship continues to grow in the right direction in the years to come. From embracing each other for at least twenty seconds after work to touching your partner during dinner, these valuable habits will instantly boost warm, passionate feelings and help you maintain that loving connection even when managing a crowded schedule.



12- Radical Marriage: Your Relationship as Your Greatest Adventure 

by David Steele, 2014




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What kind of marriage do you want?

Most couples don’t want an ordinary, boring, routine relationship. They want excitement, fun, closeness, love.

When we get married we make vows to be together until death do us part, but 50% of marriages don’t or can’t keep that commitment. We have a dream or vision of how we want our life together to be. If we don’t believe our dream is possible we feel hopeless, stuck, and eventually leave the marriage mentally, emotionally, and often physically.
Radical Marriage is for couples who believe that they are together for a reason, which is to experience life to the fullest through their relationship.

Review: 

"Radical Marriage providesclear ideas, easy strategies to follow, and a 'radical' newparadigm for creating the relationship of your dreams." - Harville Hendrix, Ph.D. and HelenLaKelly Hunt, Ph.D., Co-authors of Making Marriage Simple

"Radical Marriage is anaccessible and clear description of the steps for relationship success withmany easy-to-follow strategies for making life and love better."- Don Ferguson, Ph.D. authorof Reptiles in Love and The Couples' Manual


By Mia Conrad, 2014



Relationships: The Ultimate Guide To Better Relationships! - Communication In Relationships To Handle Dysfunctional Relationships And Create Lasting Relationships ... Sociology, Small Talk, Talk To Anyone) by [Conrad, Mia]



Eliminate toxic relationships in your life and create amazing new ones!

There’s much room in your life for brand new bonds and lifelong relationships. Through this book, you’ll be able to learn the essentials of having lasting relationships and to create harmony in your life like never before!


14- To Date a Man, You Must Understand a Man
by Gregg Michaelson, 2014



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Doesn't it drive you nuts how a man will show his soft underbelly to his male friends but not you? He won't show you crap when it comes to his emotions but he spills his guts to his buds. It's like there is some secret society that only men know. I will teach you "MAN MODE" to crack this secret just like his friends can. Man mode is how you communicate to a man just like his male friends do. It's simple, MAGICAL, and he won't even know you are doing it!

Review: 

"The author of this book has unveiled the mind of a man. Ladies, get your copy. It contains all you need to know about spicing up your relationship and the GPS to the right man. Get your copy, read, follow instructions and live happy. . . .Simple" - By moods


"I like to thank Mr. Gregg Michaelsen for such awesome book, I really enjoy reading it. Not only it is very entertaining and easy to read but it is so enlightening. Oh gosh... while reading it I could stop thinking "that is so true".. ... I felt very grateful to have Mr. Michaelsen email me. Thank you keep up your wonderful work" - By Allie M

"This book is so spot on. I am empowered after reading it. I liked Michaelsen so well I purchased a couple more of his books without even reviewing. I know they will be good reads. What I really appreciate about him is he cares about people...it shows through his writing" - By Dea Dietrick



By David Richo, 2008



Image result for When the Past Is Present: Healing the Emotional Wounds that Sabotage our Relationships


In this book, psychotherapist David Richo explores how we replay the past in our present-day relationships—and how we can free ourselves from this destructive pattern. We all have a tendency to transfer potent feelings, needs, expectations, and beliefs from childhood or from former relationships onto the people in our daily lives, whether they are our intimate partners, friends, or acquaintances. When the Past Is Present helps us to become more aware of the ways we slip into the past so that we can identify our emotional baggage and take steps to unpack it and put it where it belongs.



By Mira Kirshenbaum, 2012



Image result for I Love You But I Don’t Trust You: The Complete Guide to Restoring Trust in Your Relationship


Whether broken trust is due to daily dishonesties, a monumental betrayal, or even a history of hurts from the past, it can put a relationship at risk. This is the first book to show you exactly what to do to restore trust in your relationship, regardless of how it was damaged.

In this complete guide, couples therapist Mira Kirshenbaum will also help you understand the stages by which trust strengthens when the rebuilding process is allowed to take place. And you will learn how the two of you can avoid the mistakes that prevent healing and discover how to feel secure with each other again.
  
Review: 

“This book, based on so much experience and wisdom, will be tremendously useful for millions of people in relationships where trust has been damaged. I found important insights and suggestions everywhere.”—Pepper Schwartz, author of Love Between Equals

“If you want to find your way back to the people you love, this book is a must read. It offers a step-by-step map for rebuilding trust and helping you find peace within.”—Michele Wiener-Davis, author of Divorce Busting

“A path breaking book on restoring trust in relationships. A wonderful read based on deeply felt experiences.”—Janis Abrahms Spring, Ph.D., author of How Can I Forgive You?



17- Restore Your Marriage And Fall in Love Again 
By Krystal Kuehn, 2014




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In Marriage Help: Restore Your Marriage & Fall in Love Again you will discover how to build a strong and successful marriage. Each chapter contains relationship building tools and empowering ways to apply them. In this highly effective and engaging approach, you will be encouraged to make positive differences in the way you relate to one another. You will work through marriage problems and discover successful solutions. With tools, applications, insights and inspiring reflections, you will embark on a lifelong journey to better communication, unconditional love and understanding, and genuine demonstrations of affection and heartfelt gratitude.

This book can provide the marriage help you need to overcome marriage problems and to bring true hope, new life, and true love back into your marriage again!




18- Getting Over Getting Mad 
By Judy Ford, 2001




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With society increasingly held hostage to stress, conflict, and violence, the issue of anger is getting lots of attention. Couples, families, schools, and workplaces are all focusing attention on anger and how to effectively deal with it.

In contrast to books that analyze the causes of anger or discuss the issue on a societal level, Getting Over Getting Mad provides us with inspiration and suggestions for making positive changes in ourselves and our relationships. The book's primary emphasis is on prevention, encouraging us to deal with stress, frustration, tantrums, and annoyances quickly, before these disturbances sour feelings and burn bridges. The book also gives concrete suggestions for handling anger in ongoing difficult situations, and chronicles the author's own experiences as a therapist and workshop leader.



By Dr. Bethany Marshall, 2007



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Relationships are hard work, but how hard should they be? When do you know you are struggling too hard to make a relationship succeed?

Deal Breakers is about getting out of this “relationship purgatory”—where the present is unfulfilling and the future is the only thing you can hope for. But there is no magic future. If he won’t work on problems today, it’s unlikely they’ll ever be resolved. And passively hoping for change will only cost you years of depression or expensive therapy.

Dr. Bethany Marshall is here to remind women that relationships—like business relationships—are deals. In the business world, a deal breaker is the one nonnegotiable term that, if not agreed to, means the deal is off. But in the world of relationships, identifying your deal breaker can be much more promising, as it holds out the possibility of helping you to understand where the relationship has gone wrong, what needs to be done in order to make it better, and when to walk away because you’re doing more work than him to fix it.

A deal breaker is a boundary that smart people set for themselves because they know that falling in love can make them do stupid things. Through case studies, deal breaker scenarios, and suggested courses of action, Deal Breakers expertly guides frustrated women. By defining your deal breaker, you hold all the power to create the happiness you deserve.


By Mira Kirshenbaum, 1996




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Mira Kirshenbaum provides expert guidelines that are the key to making all your choices, concrete steps that you can implement right now, and the ultimate way to determine your personal bottom line—what you need to be happy. This remarkably insightful and probing guide offers advice that lets you see the truth about your relationship—and with wisdom and compassion, it helps you act with the confidence of knowing that whether you decide to go or stay, you are doing the very best thing.

Review: 

“Brilliant.”—Shere Hite, author of The Hite Report

“A powerful self-help resource for anyone caught in a web of relationship distress… Excellent.”—Christopher L. Hayes, author of Our Turn: Women Who Triumph in the Face of Divorce

“Few have written with such common sense and clarity about how to come out of the trap of ambivalence in marriage. I’ve recommended the book to colleagues and clients.”—CloĆ© Madanes, co-founder, The Family Therapy Institute

“A wise, compassionate, and very readable book. It will bless many lives.”—Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People

  

Our Take


Keep in mind that simply reading one of these books (or even all of them) won’t change your relationship all by itself. Books are meant to give you the tools and information that you must apply to see change. Mere information is powerless without application. So while reading any book, think of ways you can apply what you’re reading to your life, write them down and try to apply one thing at a time.

What are your favorite relationship books?
If you have other books you’d like to recommend, let me know in the comments! I’m always looking for more great books to read.


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1 commentaires

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