The Venetian Years


Giacomo Casanova - 1797
    As a scholar and an adventurer, he traveled widely throughout Europe and Russia associating with rulers and Kings. For a time he was in the service of the army and he became a great political stirrer. But he vacillated between fortune and misfortune, often resorting to gaming and loafing about. But Casanova is of course best known for his womanizing, and the writing in The Venetian Years is remarkably modern, accessible, and funny. It took him 18 years to write his memoirs and another 100 for them to be classified as genuine. Brilliantly brought to life by the effervescent Benedict Cumberbatch, this first volume of Casanova charts his childhood and life as a young man in Italy.

Virtual History: Alternatives And Counterfactuals


Niall Ferguson - 1997
    His equally masterful afterword traces the likely historical ripples that would have proceeded from the maintenance of Stuart rule in England. This breathtaking narrative gives us a convincing, detailed “alternative history” of the West—from the accession of “James III” in 1701, to a Nazi-occupied England, to a U.S. Prime Minister Kennedy who lives to complete his term.

What Is Madness?


Darian Leader - 2011
    From the popular press to TV soaps and films, the depiction of madness always borders on the extreme: violent outbursts, fits, hallucinations. But what if madness is not exactly what we think it to be? What if it is the rule rather than the exception? And what if its defining features are not visible and dramatic but, on the contrary, highly discreet, shared by average citizens who will never come to psychiatric attention? What if, in other words, there is a difference between being mad and going mad? Beginning and ending with the case of Harold Shipman - a mass-murderer so apparently 'normal' that some of his patients said they would still be treated by him even after his conviction - psychoanalyst Darian Leader explores the idea of discreet madness, and argues that it is only through revising our concept of what madness is that we will have the tools to help those who have gone mad to rebuild their lives.

The Levanter


Eric Ambler - 1972
    Michael Howell was utterly apolitical and genetically programmed for survival, a Levantine of mixed origin who possessed profitable business enterprises throughout the Middle East and an Italian mistress as his office manager. Life was sweet for Michael Howell until, one night in Damascus, he discovered that his factories had become the clandestine operations base of the Palestine Action Force, a fanatical terrorist organization dead-set on destroying Israel. Suddenly, Howell is caught in the middle with nowhere to run. Eric Ambler is the recipient of four Gold Dagger Awards and one Silver. In 1975, he was named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America.

Motivational Interviewing: Preparing People for Change


William R. Miller - 1991
    William R. Miller and Stephen Rollnick explain current thinking on the process of behavior change, present the principles of MI, and provide detailed guidelines for putting it into practice. Case examples illustrate key points and demonstrate the benefits of MI in addictions treatment and other clinical contexts. The authors also discuss the process of learning MI. The volume’s final section brings together an array of leading MI practitioners to present their work in diverse settings.

French Kiss


Eric Van Lustbader - 1988
    Two men have aleady been murdered for the Pray Duaw, and now their brothers, New York lawyer, Chris Haye, and NYPD detective Steve Guarda, are ready to face the savage madman who will stop at nothing to destroy them."Suspense that is sustained to the final page."LOS ANGELES TIMESFrom the Paperback edition.

Pensées


Blaise Pascal - 1670
    The Penseés is a collection of philosohical fragments, notes and essays in which Pascal explores the contradictions of human nature in pscyhological, social, metaphysical and - above all - theological terms. Mankind emerges from Pascal's analysis as a wretched and desolate creature within an impersonal universe, but who can be transformed through faith in God's grace.

Love Is Never Enough: How Couples Can Overcome Misunderstandings, Resolve Conflicts, and Solve Relationship Problems Through Cognitive Therapy


Aaron T. Beck - 1988
    Love Is Never Enough: How Couples Can Overcome Misunderstandings, Resolve Conflicts, and Solve Relationship Problems Through Cognitive Therapy

Long-Term Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: A Basic Text


Glen O. Gabbard - 2004
    In additional chapters, the author focuses on major issues such as starting the therapy, the use of interventions, goals and therapeutic action, ways to work with resistance, countertransference, the use of fantasies and dreams, and termination of therapy. The last two chapters cover the optimal use of supervision and how to measure core competency achievement.Though written with the psychiatric resident in mind, this remarkably practical text will appeal to a broad audience of trainees in fields such as psychology, social work, counseling, and nursing. It will also be welcomed by educators and students alike as an invaluable teaching tool that can be "put to work" right away as a powerful adjunct to supervision, classroom teaching, and clinical experience with a variety of patients.

Decoding Anorexia: How Breakthroughs in Science Offer Hope for Eating Disorders


Carrie Arnold - 2012
    Its clear, user-friendly descriptions of the genetics and neuroscience behind the disorder is paired with first person descriptions and personal narratives of what biological differences mean to sufferers. Author Carrie Arnold, a trained scientist, science writer, and past sufferer of anorexia, speaks with clinicians, researchers, parents, other family members, and sufferers about the factors that make one vulnerable to anorexia, the neurochemistry behind the call of starvation, and why it's so hard to leave anorexia behind. She also addresses: - How environment is still important and influences behaviors- The characteristics of people at high risk for developing anorexia nervosa- Why anorexics find starvation "rewarding"- Why denial is such a salient feature, and how sufferers can overcome itCarrie also includes interviews with key figures in the field who explain their work and how it contributes to our understanding of anorexia. Long thought to be a psychosocial disease of fickle teens, this book alters the way anorexia is understood and treated and gives patients, their doctors, and their family members hope.

The Developing Mind: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are


Daniel J. Siegel - 1999
    Daniel J. Siegel presents a groundbreaking new way of thinking about the emergence of the human mind, and the process by which each of us becomes a feeling, thinking, remembering individual. Illuminating how and why neurobiology matters, this book is essential reading for clinicians, educators, researchers, and students interested in human experience and development across the life span.

The Coming of Age


Simone de Beauvoir - 1996
    

ACT with Love: Stop Struggling, Reconcile Differences, and Strengthen Your Relationship with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy


Russ Harris - 2009
    The inconvenient truth is there's no such thing as a perfect partner, all couples fight, and feelings of love come and go like the weather. But that doesn't mean you can't have a joyful and romantic relationship. Through a simple program based on the revolutionary new mindfulness-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), you can learn to handle painful thoughts and feelings more effectively and engage fully in the process of living and loving together.With your partner or alone, ACT with Love will teach you how to:Let go of conflict, open up, and live fully in the presentUse mindfulness to increase intimacy, connection, and understandingResolve painful conflicts and reconcile long-standing differencesAct on your values to build a rich and meaningful relationship

The Addams Family


Elizabeth Faucher - 1991
    

The Emperor, C'est Moi


Hugo Horiot - 2013
    He is obsessed with the otherworldly language of pipes—they run, he imagines, from his family home to the center of the earth. He causes endless trouble at home and hates school. He muses: “I dream asleep, I dream awake”—but he dreams so hard he shuts out the world with reveries that are not just curious but dangerous and painful too. School is a prison he must escape, his teachers oppressors, and his classmates “a band of jolly torturers.” This is the portrait of a boy who might happen to suffer from autism, but who is also a beautiful rebel inspired to blaze his own path through childhood to find an enduring sense of personal freedom.