What difference does it make in people s lives

when they become parents for the first time?

In a systematic comparative study of the

timing of parenthood, the authors inter-

viewed eighty-six coupies-mothers and

fathers together who had their first child at

about twenty, or thirty, or forty years old.

Setting aside the issue of teenage parenthood,

which has its own particular complexity, this

book explores the developmental signifi-

cance of the timing of parenthood in adult

lives.

Drawing on the experience of parents in

different family stages and from diverse

backgrounds, Sooner or Later is about the

relevance of timing both in the beginning

and at subsequent moments in parents and

children s lives. The question here is not

"whether?" but "when?" and how does the

"when" work out across the life cycle? How

does the timing of parenthood affect mar-

riages as couples make room for their first

child ? As they enlarge the nest to include a

second child? What are the implications for

the ways in which women and men integrate

the pleasures and cares of family life with the

pleasures and cares of their work in the

world? What difference does it make to be

"older" or "younger" when children leave

home?

Parenthood affects us in profound and par-

ticular ways. This book is for parents of both

sexes and all ages and for everyone con-

cerned with the complexities of adult life.