About the Book
What does a free-spirited, fifty-something professional do when she breaks up with her non-committal boyfriend and longs for a life partner? She challenges herself to go on fifty first dates, promises herself steamy sex along the way, and voila, finding Mr. Right becomes a sexy dating project! Winner of 10 awards in the areas of relationships, sexuality, women's issues, and memoir, Fifty First Dates after Fifty: A Memoir celebrates female sexuality and offers an uplifting and inspirational view of dating as an enjoyable journey of self-discovery and self-love. Set in the world of personal growth workshops and spiritual ceremonies, Carolyn Lee Arnold transforms her quest for love into a sensual adventure as she searches for a man who matches her spirit. Navigating the highs and lows of dating, she avoids settling for the wrong guy, discovers the type of man she wants, reconciles a love of independence and sex with her desire for commitment and emotional connection, and finds the unique partner for her. Erotic in places, funny in others, this upbeat memoir about a successful search for a partner in midlife provides an entertaining smorgasbord of dating ideas for any woman searching for her own Mr. Right.
About the Author :
Carolyn Lee Arnold drew upon her thirty years as a social science researcher and ten years as a relationship workshop assistant to create the dating project in Fifty First Dates after Fifty. A native Californian from Los Angeles with a New England education, Carolyn found her true home in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she prepared for dating and life by attending spiritual ceremonies, working in free clinics, leading women’s backpacking trips, hiking the local green hills, identifying as a lesbian-feminist in the 1970s and ’80s, and earning graduate degrees in women’s studies, statistics, and educational research. Fifty First Dates after Fifty is her first book, and excerpts have been published in Persimmon Tree, Outside In Literary & Travel Magazine, and the Human Awareness Institute’s Enlighten Journal. An excerpt from her second memoir, about her lesbian-feminist years, has been published in Noyo River Review. Still a feminist, she lives in the Bay Area with her partner, one of her fifty dates. For more information, including dating resources, visit carolynleearnold.com.
Review :
2022 Zibby Awards: Best Dedication
2022 Living Now Book Awards Gold Medalist in Relationships / Marriage
2022 International Book Awards (IBA): Winner in Women’s Issues/Women’s Studies
Finalist in Nonfiction: Narrative and in New Age: Nonfiction
2022 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPYs): Gold Medal in Sexuality/Relationships
2022 Human Relations Indie Book Awards: Gold in Motivational Memoir
Silver in Personal Relationships Memoir
Silver in Inspirational
2022 Next Generation Indie Book Awards: Finalist in Memoir (Other)
2021 Northern California Publishers & Authors Book Awards: Gold for Cover/Interior Design
2021 Chanticleer Hearten Book Awards: Finalist, Uplifting and Inspiring Non-Fiction and Memoir
2021 Chanticleer Mind & Spirit Book Awards: Short List, Enlightenment & Well-being Non-Fiction
2021 Best Book Awards: Finalist in New Age: Non-Fiction
2021 Firebird Book Awards: First Place in Memoir, Relationships, Sexuality, and New Age Culture
“A memoir about seeking romance in midlife, Carolyn Lee Arnold’s Fifty First Dates after Fifty is genuine as it recounts a period of trying out new relationships and investigating spirituality…. Arnold is an accessible and conversational guide.”
—Foreword
“… an uplifting, enjoyable read destined for women who are still open to finding love and being intimate with men until they find the right partners ... an inspirational dating book that teaches women how to date and find a long-term equal partner ... a well-written, sexy, and easy-to-read memoir that would appeal to women of all ages.”
—Reader's Favorite, 4 stars
“...an upbeat true story about one woman’s search for love in her fifties. Carolyn Lee Arnold reminds readers they are never too old to find love and happiness, all they have to do is take a chance. It also reminds readers [that] dating can be enjoyable even if it never progresses to a second date.”
—Entrada
“This is no mere memoir, but a handbook on how to date the adult way. By reading Arnold's entertaining and upbeat story of voracious exploration, Generation X, Y, and Z can learn everything no one ever taught them about effective communication, self-care, emotional responsibility, and joyful sexual freedom. If dating is in your future, this inspirational book is for you.”
—Robin Rinaldi, author of The Wild Oats Project: One Woman’s Midlife Quest for Passion at Any Cost
“This book will have great appeal to other seekers—men and women—especially those who are older or long for a deep sensual connection to others. Carolyn is such a role model for other middle-aged women—unafraid, unabashedly sensual and assertive. I love how brave and brazen she is!!”
—Julia Scheeres, author of the New York Times best-selling memoir Jesus Land
“Carolyn’s goal of fifty dates was a brilliant way to find a partner, and her communication skills, honesty, and appreciative regard for her dates would help anyone - not only in dating, but in all one's relationships.”
—Chas August, Relationship & Intimacy Coach
“Carolyn Arnold's dating stories in Fifty First Dates After Fifty will be inspiring for any woman who worries that life has passed her by and that it's too late to attract a life partner. There will be bad dates, broken hearts and dashed expectations—and some hot fun along the way. Carolyn's stories of dating resilience and persistence show us that finding a deep love is possible at every age.”
—Sasha Cagen, feminist life coach and author of Quirkyalone: A Manifesto for Uncompromising Romantics
“Fifty First Dates after Fifty is not your typical dating book. Carolyn boldly shares the raw vulnerabilities of being a person truly living life on her own terms. You’ll be rooting for Carolyn all the way through as she tries, fails, feels, picks herself up, dusts herself off, and courageously moves forward into her next new adventure.. .. . . funny and engaging . . . I was hooked at the prologue. You will be too.”
—Wendy Newman, author of 121 First Dates: How to Succeed at Online Dating, Fall in Love, and Live Happily Ever After (Really!)
"Fifty First Dates After Fiftyis a frolicking, often racy, memoir. … a fast, fun read. Arnold’s prose is clever, engaging, and confident. Arnold is unabashedly sensual and liberated throughout in terms of her approach to sexuality and what constitutes a fulfilling relationship.”
—Story Circle Network
“Blending memoir and self-help, … Arnold offers a quick, refreshing––and surprisingly pro-sex––read about redefining relationships and expectations in a monogamous-normative world.”
—Booklife
