Book excerpt: For a decade, Amy Dickinson has been the Chicago Tribune's signature general advice columnist, helping readers with questions both personal and pressing. Ask Amy: Advice for Better Living is a collection of over 200 question-and-answer columns taken from 2011–2013. As the highly popular successor to the legendary Ann Landers, Dickinson answers readers' questions with care and attention, while also providing a plainspoken, straight-shooting dose of reality that often only comes to us from close friends. Dickinson's advice is rooted in honesty and trust, which is why so many readers turn to her for advice on their everyday lives and for maintaining healthy, lasting relationships. Ask Amy: Advice for Better Living is a testament to the empathetic counsel and practical common-sense tips that Dickinson has been distilling for years.