Psychotherapy with Schizophrenics: A Symposium: Edited by Eugene B. Brody and Fredrick C. Redlich. New York: International Universities Press, Inc., 1952. 246 pp.

This valuable book is the more interesting because it is the report of a symposium held in Yale University School of Medicine in 1950. The style is of speakers rather than writers and gives a vivid impression of the characters of the therapists. This is in keeping with the times and the growing recognition of the importance of the participation of the therapist in relationship to psychotic patients. The introduction by Robert P. Knight states the major clinical and theoretical importance of schizophrenia, and differentiates dementia præcox (nuclear schizophrenia) from schizophrenia (process schizophrenia). The distinction is made also between primary, or basic, symptoms—the loosening of associations—and the secondary symptoms. Reference is made to the value of the contributions of several therapists who are aware of the difficulties and yet reveal a restrained optimism. The first third of the book is devoted to The Concept of Schizophrenia and Its Implication for Therapy, by Fredrick C. Redlich, and The Treatment of Schizophrenia: A Review, by Eugene B. Brody. These papers are academic, intellectual, scientifically sceptical and constitute a highly condensed review of the fields to which they refer. There is an adequate bibliography following each paper. The remainder of the book is devoted to contributions by analytically oriented psychotherapists who speak from personal experience. There is a satisfying commingling of practice and theory. This book must be read by all who are participating in the field.

Frieda Fromm-Reichmann presents, with her usual clarity and personal warmth, a condensation of her practical knowledge of the dynamic treatment of schizophrenics. She comments that the schizophrenic longing for interpersonal contact is approximately equal to the fear of it and, therefore, an intensely charged relationship can be established. She regrets the decade which was devoted so largely to understanding and interpreting the content of schizophren