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Reviewing a book written by a well respected colleague is not always an easy task. How does one approach it with honesty and integrity in these circumstances? I can confess that on this occasion several things have made my position much more straightforward. Firstly, I was already a huge fan of Music's earlier work, Nurturing Natures, a theoretical exposition of child development that draws on attachment theory, neuroscience, developmental psychology and cross-cultural studies. Secondly, I have had the privilege of attending various workshops, trainings and presentations with Music where I have been able to hear something of his approach to his clinical work, especially in relation to trauma and the body. And finally, Nurturing Children is a wonderful book and one I can recommend without hesitation, so my task is simple.
My perspective as an adult medical psychotherapist, psychoanalyst and lead of a trauma service inevitably informs how I have approached this book. The developmentally traumatized adults who I work with bring into the room and into the transference the infantile and child aspects of themselves, often in a vivid and sometimes overwhelming way. Reading Music's descriptions of the children and adolescents he has encountered in his work as a child psychotherapist deepened and enriched my understanding of the adults I see. This in itself highlights the important preventative work a good child psychotherapist can do to help stop these children from later needing to come to an adult service such as mine.
It is often said that the best writers and teachers can make complex theory look deceptively simple. This is certainly true in this clearly written, virtually jargon-free account of Music's clinical work and the theoretical underpinnings he employs. It is accessible, thoughtful and easy to read. I would suspect that some of what makes this possible is also linked to the stance that he takes in relation to the work – a stance of warmth, compassion, openness an