Among the wealth of books on the ethical dimension in psychoanalysis and the psychotherapies published in recent years, Alan Tjaltveit's is among the best researched and extensive in what it sets out to achieve. He takes on the task of addressing both the practical and theoretical challenges, and asking the difficult questions that ethicists are insisting that psychotherapists must face. It is also important that readers in this country note that this is an American book, and that the social and ethical contexts that are examined may have some differences from those with which we are familiar in this country. This is perhaps reflected also in the tone of the book, which is optimistic, progressive and solution-seeking. It may be that an