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As the title suggests, this book presents the basics of the art of psychotherapy with children and therefore it is addressed particularly to therapists in training and young clinicians. The principles and process of psychodynamic psychotherapy with children are well described and supported by a sound theoretical base. The author's easy conversational style using clear, vivid language free of technical jargon engages the reader's interest and attention throughout. Many vignettes expressing subtle, sensitive shadings of clinical experience add colour and depth to the understanding of theoretical concepts.
However, what makes for the strengths of the book also contributes to its weaknesses. In order to be comprehensive from a didactic point-of-view, the author makes many digressions which are not essential to the main subject even though they may be of interest for the reader not well acquainted with topics like child development, parenting and basic psychoanalytic principles.
The author's theoretical orientation and conceptual tools centre around classical Freudian concepts as modified for child analysis and child psychotherapy, in general, by Anna Freud. Clinicians using other theoretical models of child development will be disappointed. There is little consideration of archaic mechanisms and primitive fantasies. Moreover, the influence of early object relationships and their internal representations on the psychotherapeutic process is not emphasized.
The book is divided into five parts. In part I, Coppolillo presents some general considerations about psychotherapy. He describes the physical environment related to child psychotherapy (waiting area, consulting room, choice of toys) and the psychological components of the therapeutic environment.
The author begins part II, which deals with the evaluation process, by reviewing the influence of the parents on the normal and psychopathological development of the child. These topics are presented succinctly but they