June 13, 2013 Dear Instant Family Long description for Smashwords Dear Instant Family is this widowed dad's true story of what happened when 400 women responded to his personal ad seeking a wife and a mother for his young children. The memoir ranges from hysterically funny to desperately poignant as the author searches for happiness for himself and his kids. The journey begins when Evan's wife contracts a mysterious and deadly virus just six weeks after she gives birth to his daughter, leaving him with three little kids under five to raise in the middle of Manhattan. After an appropriate period of mourning, he decides it's time to "get on with it," and find a woman who can be both a great partner and a great mom. He enters the "mature" urban dating world - and encounters lots of stress and very little success. So, he decides to place an ad in New York magazine that's headlined Dear Instant Family. Then the fun begins, as over 200 letters and 200 phone messages come pouring in from women, all of whom who see themselves as the ideal solution to his dilemma. Dear Instant Family includes many of the best letters (with identities well hidden). Here's a sampling of just two: "I often read the personals, but only for their sheer entertainment value - I never knew there were so many devastatingly handsome, wonderfully sensitive billionaires." "Stable, committed to personal growth, very funny, compassionate, spiritual, communicative, well-adjusted, semi-athletic, intelligent, artistic, and I eat all my vegetables." Now what? How does Evan decide whom to call and whom to ignore? What's more important to him in the woman he seeks: a burning desire to raise a young family, or, arm candy? Or, can he have both? The author embarks on his dating path with a well thought out plan, and quickly realizes there's no plan that's going to help, since he's not quite sure just what he wants. It's all happenstance, as he meets a wide variety of women: those with "Maternal Instincts," "The Therapists," "The Comedians," "The Achievers," Beautiful Dreamers," "Attention Getters," "The Flatterers," "Indiscriminating Women," and lots more - each type with a chapter of their own. Follow Evan on his quest to meet "just the right one" as he crisscrosses his way across Manhattan - and well beyond. Adventures alternate with misadventures - and conquests follow disappointments and the reality that this may be, when all is said and done, a game of chance. The author also offers his thoughts on how to write an attention-getting profile on a dating site and how best to respond. After reading his suggestions, perhaps you'll get 400 responses. How does it all end? Well, there's a surprising and ironic twist, but we'll let our readers find out for themselves.