Schopenhauer's Porcupines: Intimacy and Its Dilemmas Paperback – International Edition, February 24, 2003

The writer provides a window to observe the transformation of another, thereby offering hope to we as individuals in our own growth.As a therapist it’s one more reminder of how to do the deeper work. So grateful for well written pages such as this.

Great side reading, audio version is better for me personally

I love this book, great conflict and resolution tool

There are five cases histories here of very different people, of different ages, sexes, and social classes, living in the modern world. The therapist is a Freudian and a woman, though both those facts don't seem paramount in the book. The Freudian approach is matter-of-fact and the author is a pro-choice and older feminist. At the same time, both elements do inform the analyses.What is especially interesting are the descriptions of transference and countertransference, both of which Freud considered fundamental to his form of psychotherapy. You come away with a view of human nature that is much more subtle than any in all those behavioral and neurolinguistic attempts to understand the human brain.The accounts are lightly punctuated with this very experienced analyst's insightful comments. "The greatest advantage of not having children must be that you can go on believing you are a nice person.". Winnicott is very present here, too: "Therapy takes place neither inside the mind of the patient nor inside that of the therapist, but in some middle area, in the potential space between them.". But lest you fear that these abstract comments are wearying I can tell you that the analyses make them incredibly profound.The writing is clear as a bell.

The stories here are delightful, and eminently readable. Luepnitz has interesting patients and clearly cares about them. What she seems to be doing here is writing a popular text that illustrates how psychodynamic psychotherapy works. I’m sure there are others but I can’t think of a better one.

Needed for classes, what else can I say

I came across this book on amazon and got intrigued by it based on the other 5 star reviews. I’m so glad I ordered it because this book opened up a whole new genre of books for me. As a person interested in how therapy works, the stories presented in this book give a detailed perspective on how a therapist works with her clients. Dr. Deborah, the author, comes across as a very skilled and mature therapist. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in this genre - this is one of the best works that I’ve come across so far.

Loved this book