About the book: 2023 / Even 200 years ago, people lived in large patriarchal families, with grandparents under one roof. With the advent of the industrial age, the nuclear family of two spouses and one or two children appeared. But times change - and alternatives appear to the family that we are accustomed to consider traditional. When we look for life partners, we increasingly proceed from what we want, and not from what is accepted. Personal life has turned into an individual project that can be implemented in a variety of ways. This book is about how the institution of family is changing, what types of relationships between men and women exist today, what alternatives are emerging. Svetlana Kolchik is a journalist with 20 years of experience. Based on real stories and numerous interviews, she talks about what a Boston marriage, a patchwork family, living alone is like, and the reasons why people choose certain ways of living together. For whom the book will be of interest to those who are not satisfied with the traditional patriarchal way of life for various reasons, as well as those interested in the alternatives existing in the world.