Suicide. Understanding and Responding. Harvard Medical School Perspectives: Edited by Douglas Jacobs and Herbert N. Brown. Madison, CT: International Universities Press, Inc., 1989. 505 pp.

This volume is a selection of papers presented at the series of suicide symposia that began under the auspices of the Cambridge Hospital Psychiatry Department. These symposia began in 1981 and extended over several years. Most of the participants are or were affiliated with the Harvard Medical School.

Individual papers deal with a broad spectrum of the issues pertaining to suicide, its causes, meaning, and treatment. The book presents an effort to articulate a broad, encompassing perspective on the nature and treatment of suicide worthy of carrying the Harvard good healthkeeping seal of approval. Some chapters are devoted to various aspects of the problem of suicide, including public health, epidemiology, psychological vulnerability, biological determinants, social relations, and risk management. Others focus on issues met with in specific categories: personality disorders, affective disorders, schizophrenia, children, adolescents, the elderly, and women. Discussions deal with the therapeutic management of suicidal cases in a variety of settings, such as in psychotherapy, in the emergency room, and in the hospital in both inpatient and outpatient situations. Finally, several contributions take up moral and legal questions. There is even reflection on nuclear war and collective suicide. The coverage seems quite complete, touching all the