Book Reviews

by Pem/Pam in SC

I have written short reviews of the books that I have found interesting on my healing journey. The reviews are divided into categories and each section is a separate web page; find the section you want in the following index:

• Autobiographies by Abuse Survivors (mostly multiples)
• Therapy Accounts Coauthored by Therapist and Client
• Collections of Writings about Survivor Issues
• Self-Help Books by Survivors
• Self-Help Books by Professionals
• Philosophical Works about Multiple Personality and Child Abuse
• Religious Issues (Christian)
• Popular Psychology
• Memoirs by Therapists
• Discussions of other kinds of trauma
• Fiction

A few comments: I am dealing here only with published books (you can see my academic biasses already). The reviews below are all written by me--so at least you know they all have the same biasses (for example, I don't like therapists who think they have all the answers, and I am particularly interested in books describing less extreme DID).

If you disagree, I would be interested in hearing your opinion (and I will think about it, but I don't promise to change mine. If anyone wants to send me a free copy of a book you have written, I promise I will review it, but I won't put up reviews written by other people. You can find other book lists and reviews by other people at Astrea's Book List, Recommended Reading for Adult Survivors of Childhood Abuse and Anita's Book List. There is also an extensive annotated bibliography of self-help books at Self Help Book Index.

I do not include books written for professionals. I find I don't like to read books written for professionals because I don't like to read books that refer to the group I am a member of as "them." I also find the professional literature too oriented towards finding one best method of healing that will work for everyone rather than encouraging each individual to find their own healing path.

Warning: There are a lot of triggering books listed here; even the descriptions could be triggering.

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