Has the book 13 women you should never marry been accused of false teaching or misogyny by credible sources
This fact-check may be outdated. Consider refreshing it to get the most current information.
Executive summary
Mary Colbert’s book 13 Women You Should Never Marry is widely distributed by its publisher Worthy Books and retail listings and summaries portray it as a Christian guide listing 13 “types” of women men should avoid [1] [2]. Available sources in this set show mainstream retail, library and author sites describing the book and its chapter types, but they do not include any reporting from major outlets or clear, named credible critics accusing the book of “false teaching” or misogyny (available sources do not mention accusations from credible critics; [9]; [3]; [9]0).
1. What the book is and how it is presented
Publishers and retailers describe the title as a faith-oriented self-help guide aimed at men, listing archetypal “problem” women — e.g., Blinded Brenda, Dominating Donna, Trophy Tina, Lying Linda, Sad Sally — and advising men how to recognize them in the context of marriage [1] [3] [4]. Hachette’s description frames the work with a biblical reference to Ephesians and the idea of “a good wife,” positioning the book inside Christian marriage counsel rather than secular relationship research [1] [4]. Multiple sales listings and library records confirm the book’s availability and its cataloguing as Christian life/marriage material [5] [6] [7].
2. Evidence for accusations of “false teaching” or misogyny in these sources
The search results provided contain no articles, opinion pieces, or reviews from prominent news organizations or established academic critics that label the book as “false teaching” or misogynistic. The set is composed primarily of marketing, retail, library and summary pages that present the book’s premise and chapter names, but do not record mainstream critical denunciations (available sources do not mention accusations of false teaching or misogyny; [9]; [8]; [9]0).
3. What supporters and sellers emphasize
Retail and author pages emphasize humor, insight, and a corrective purpose: to help men spot problematic traits and to “hold a mirror up” to women so they can self-examine [8] [3]. Some listings explicitly state the book is meant to provide guidance on “what to watch out for” and to improve partnership prospects, framing it as constructive rather than merely condemnatory [9] [4].
4. How critics might plausibly frame objections — not found here but reasoned from content
Although the current sources don’t include critics, the book’s format — a checklist of “types” men should avoid — lends itself to two predictable critiques in broader debates about gender and religion: that it reduces women to stereotyped types and assigns moral judgments based on roles or personality, and that religious framing can be read as prescriptive gender teaching. Those critiques are logical in light of the book’s marketed content (the chapter labels and the Ephesians reference) but must be treated as hypothetical because the provided documents do not contain such critiques or named credible accusers [3] [4].
5. Limits of the available reporting and what’s missing
The supplied results are dominated by sales pages, library catalogs and a Goodreads entry; they lack journalistic reviews, denominational statements, scholarly analysis, or major-media coverage that could confirm claims of false doctrine or misogyny (available sources do not mention major-media or scholarly critiques; [9]; [9]0). There is also no record here of organized pushback from religious authorities or advocacy groups. Without such sources, any definitive claim that “credible sources have accused the book” cannot be supported from this dataset.
6. Practical next steps for verification
To determine whether credible sources have publicly accused the book of false teaching or misogyny, consult major newspapers, religious publications, academic journals, or statements from denominational bodies — none are present in the provided search results (available sources do not mention these outlets or statements; p1_s3). Look for book reviews, opinion pieces, or formal critiques dated after the book’s 2015/2023 listings that reference “false teaching” or misogyny by name.
Sources cited in this report are limited to the provided results: publisher and retailer descriptions and library/catalog entries for Mary Colbert’s 13 Women You Should Never Marry [9] [8] [3] [4] [6] [1] [5] [7] [2].