"Compelling reading, keeping the reader engaged from the beginning." -- Sahayadas Fernando, INTAMS Library "The book is unique in its focus on the role that procreative and child welfare considerations have played in policy and legal debates involving same-sex marriage - and how these considerations have been deployed by those who oppose marriage equality and parenting rights for same-sex couples. It will be an excellent supplement to courses on marriage, law, LGBT rights, and family policy." --Abbie E. Goldberg, Associate Professor of Psychology at Clark University, Author of Gay Dads and Lesbian and Gay Parents and Their Children, and Editor of LGBT-Parent Families "Arguments about the welfare of children have long been at the center of the same-sex marriage debate. In this important new book, Carlos Ball lucidly analyzes these arguments through the prisms of law, history and sociology. Ball's analysis manages to be both systematic, yet highly readable, and the book will be a must-read for those who want to understand how ideas about procreation and 'parental optimality' have been used-and often misused-in the debate." --Jane S.

Schacter, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law, Stanford University Law School "How will marriage equality affect children? This question has played a starring role in recent battles over legal recognition for the marriages of same-sex couples. As Carlos Ball's exposition reveals, debates about marriage law have been deeply affected by beliefs about child development. On the other hand, arguments about child welfare have also been used at times to mask quite different concerns. By intertwining materials from social science, social history, and law, Ball weaves a tale of impressive breadth and clarity. In the end, he writes, marriage equality debates renew old questions about the qualities of good parenting and about the purposes of marriage. As marriage equality becomes a reality before our eyes, all those who care about marriage, parenting, and the law will be enlightened by Professor Ball's book." -- Charlotte J. Patterson, PhD, Professor of Psychology, University of Virginia.