Sister relationships span a huge range, from best friends to worst enemies. From 'I adore her; I talk to her five times a day' to 'I decided to cut her out of my life.' For most women, it's in between.

A sister is like yourself in a different movie, a movie that stars you in a different life.

Relationships are made of talk - and talk is for girls and women.

For most women, the language of conversation is primarily a language of rapport: a way of establishing connections and negotiating relationships.

American popular culture, like individuals in daily life, tends to either romanticize or demonize mothers. We ricochet between 'Everything I ever accomplished I owe to my mother' and 'Every problem I have in my life is my mother's fault.'

It's a particularly modern myth that married people are best friends. The best-friend concept is a uniquely female phenomena.