Rating: 
Summary: I was very dissappointed
Review: Al and Tipper are enormously important personalities of our times, but this book really dissappointed me. I expected to be engaged by their ideas, but felt myself disconnected from the experiences they describe. They have got a great book in them waiting to emerge, but this is not it.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrific about real families
Review: This isn't a book about the pretend family values of right wing historical revisionist fantasy. This book by Al and Tipper Gore is a realistic look at family life. What is a real family? Who are the people who love and nurture you, who give you a home base to grow from? The stories are wonderful and insightful. If you are looking for a lot of chatising of people for not being the perfect nuclear family where Dad works and Mom stays home....you won't find it here. This is a book about the real challenges of family life in 2002 and how real people cope with and overcome problems.
Rating:
Summary: Stories that will hit home for about anyone...
Review: This book is the work of years of studying family dynamics with experts on family at the Gores' "Family Reunions" and has very telling, reassuring things to say.On one hand, this book serves as a "no, you're not crazy" message in that yes, people work longer, play less, sleep less, and no, the "normal family" is no longer normal. On the other hand, it gives you insights into families who have been through some of the same problems as you may have, and some problems that you may notice for the first time - and shows you how these strong families perservered. For Gore fans, there is impressive insights into the Gore's own lives, including discussion about when they were dating, problems the Gore's have struggled through (including arguments and the feeling of neglect), and basically dives deep into what the Gore's believe are core fundamental elements of a strong family. As much as this book is a sociology book, it is also an inspirational text that can serve as a building block resource for strengthening your own family. There are many, many resources in the back of the book for the different ideas discussed.
Rating:
Summary: very compassionate
Review: I found this book to be a sensitive and realistic view of modern family life. It celebrates the truth about family life as it really exists, and dispels the ignorant backwards myth of what family life should be. I feel so much better knowing that the old norm of families in America is just not the way we as Americans live today. I will no longer allow uptight, stuffy, holier than thou types suggest to me that my family is any less acceptable simply because we don't fit their 1950's vision of how family "should" be. All that matters is that we love and respect one another.
Rating: 
Summary: A smile in every pot!
Review: Interesting and warm, doesn't have a continue storyline, but you sure will like this provocative view about "the evolution of the American Family". I knew about this book in 20/20 and I think that this kind of work is a logic transition for someone who has a wide experience meeting families the past years. I feel too that "the family is the bedrock of the society", so perharps you are not going to share all the ideas in this book, but take for certain that you are not going to waste your time reading this book that go over again of some of the most important values in Family... and make you think and smile more than once!
Rating:
Summary: Gore in '04! Gore in '04!
Review: A wonderful book by a great American scholar and patriot. This book reveals not only the thoughtful, intellectual side of the former vice-president, but the more tender, family-values side that some claimed was missing from his campaign performance in 2000. A powerful work....
Rating:
Summary: Political but persuasive
Review: This book may be just a cover for Al Gore's political reemergence, but the Gores were talking about family values even before, well, Dan Quayle. It's worth remembering that Gore got the nod for the 1992 Democratic ticket precisely to be the good guy to Clinton's rogue, and those values come through in this book. Gore was certainly tarnished by Clinton's grotesque White House behavior, but he's paid his dues on that one (and how) and should now be recognized for what he stands for on his own.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely Interesting Look at the Family
Review: I found the best way to read this book was to ignore the questions about Al Gore's political future. It's an incredibly important book - documenting tremendous changes that have happened so gradually that we almost ignore them. As a new mother, I found the discussion of the stresses on family life particularly illuminating. And the policy solution were well argued. This is really not a political book, but a substantive look at an important issue. I recently read Ann Critendon's book on the way motherhood is treated in our society and I think this is a good companion. We pay a lot of lip service to family values while at the same time our government and business policies ignore the tremendous pressures placed on families -- leaving parents little time to spend with their children, punishing women who choose to stay at home for a time and punishing women who return to work. This book will really make you think about your own values and that of our society.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book, Give It to Friends for the Holidays
Review: This book is a wonderful work about contemporary American families by Al and Tipper Gore. It discusses how the family has evolved in our country, how families cope with all the pressures of modern life, and how families still manage to pull together. Mr. and Mrs. Gore have produced a very thoughtful book that ought to be read by many Americans. I very highly recommend it as a holiday gift. I have bought several copies to give as gifts to my (extended) family members. This book, with its emphasis on the family and love, stands in stark contrast to the Iraq war-provoking tendencies of the current Resident of the White House. Clearly, the wrong person became President in 2001. Hopefully, Mr. Gore will run again, get elected in 2004, and become a great president starting in 2005.
Rating:
Summary: much needed book
Review: This is a wonderful book, well written, thoughtful and though provoking. The family - in all its variations - is the basis for every culture and Al and Tipper Gore could not have done a better job here. They are brilliant and this is an important book.
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