Studies show that nearly 70 percent of divorces are initiated by women—women who are tired, fed up, exhausted, and unhappy. We’ve all seen how the media portrays divorcées: sad, lonely, drowning their sorrows in a bottle of wine. Lyz Lenz is one such woman whose life fell apart after she reached a breaking point in her twelve-year marriage. But she refused to take part in that tired narrative and decided to flip the script on divorce.

In this exuberant and unapologetic book, Lenz makes an argument for the advantages of getting divorced, framing it as a practical and effective solution for women to take back the power they are owed. Weaving reportage with sociological research and literature with popular culture along with personal stories of coming together and breaking up, Lenz creates a kaleidoscopic and poignant portrait of American marriage today. She argues that the mechanisms of American power, justice, love, and gender equality remain deeply flawed, and that marriage, like any other cultural institution, is due for a reckoning. A raucous argument for acceptance, solidarity, and collective female refusal, This American Ex-Wife takes readers on a riveting ride—while pointing us all toward a life that is a little more free.

Lyz Lenz is a journalist and the author of God Land and Belabored. She has written for Insider, The New York Times, Marie Claire, and The Washington Post. Lenz also writes the newsletter Men Yell at Me about the intersection of politics and personhood in red-state America. She lives in Iowa with her two kids.

Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl is one of the most awarded magazine writers in the country, with six James Beard Award wins (and 15 nominations)-the so-called Oscars of food world-and another 6 CRMAs, known as the Pulitzers of magazines. She grew up in New York City, little aware of her destiny: to write about the quirks and passions, the foods and cocktails, the people and places of Minnesota. She started her work life as a 13-year-old restaurant dishwasher and, after coming to Minnesota to attend Carleton College, became City Pages' restaurant critic in 1997. Since then she has worked as a staff writer, columnist, and critic at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Delta Sky, Minnesota Monthly, Gourmet, Saveur, Food & Wine, Experience Life, Bon Appétit, and other publications. For eight years she hosted a radio show on WCCO called "Off the Menu," and she is a regular guest on Minnesota Public Radio. She lives in south Minneapolis with a dog the size of a cat, a cat the size of a cat, and two children who are much bigger than cats and want to be left out of it. She would like everyone to know that Minneapolis is one of the best places in the world, as long as you have a lot of pairs of boots and love snow, which she does.

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