Featured Book: "The Breaking Point: How Today's Women Are Navigating Midlife Crisis"

Wall Street Journal staff writer Sue Shellenbarger wasn't looking to write a book about female midlife crisis -- the subject found her.

She got the idea for "The Breaking Point: How Today's Women Are Navigating Midlife Crisis" after she wrote about her ATV accident in her "Work & Family" column, and commented that "The midlife crisis is a cliche -- until you have one."

Soon after, she knew she was onto something. She received "one of the biggest reader responses I had received in 12 years as a columnist."

Digging into the subject, she found "A startlingly high number of women have experienced what they consider a midlife crisis, broadly defined as a stressful or turbulent psychological transition that occurs most often in the late 40s and early 50s." And slightly more women than men report having one (36% vs 34%).

Shellenbarger attributes this to women today:

- facing increased stress, which can precipitate their crisis;
- having the financial wherewithal to consider alternatives;
- and having the skills and self-confidence to consider making dramatic changes

Shellenbarger uses the stories of fifty women going through midlife to group female midlife crises into several types. She similarly organizes how they dealt with the transition.

The book is generally well reviewed at Amazon although some think that Schellenbarger's archetypes and anecdotes break no new ground.

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source of quotes: Wall Street Journal (subscription may be required)